The power of the KBO League MVP in the 2024 season was great. I balanced the game at one point. Kim Do-young (KIA Tigers) activated a cannon at a valuable moment, raising expectations for his performance at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC).
The South Korean national baseball team, led by head coach Ryu Ji-hyun, is playing an exhibition match against the Hanshin Tigers of the Japanese Professional Baseball (NPB) at Kyocera Dome in Osaka, Japan, on the 2nd.
The match is an official warm-up match organized by the WBC Secretariat. After that, South Korea will hold another warm-up match with the Orix Buffaloes at the same place on the 3rd and start the 2026 WBC match.
사진 확대 Photo = Yonhap News 
사진 확대 Photo = Yonhap News
In the first round of the WBC, South Korea, which belongs to Group C, will play its first match against the Czech Republic on the 5th and then have a day off. It will then face Japan, Taiwan, and Australia on the 7th and 9th in a row. If you finish in the top two, you can play in the second round.
Kim Do-young, who was named in the national team’s starting lineup as the first batter and third baseman in the match against Hanshin, swung his bat fiercely from the beginning. He got on base with an infield single in the top of the first inning. He then reached second base with a heavy hit by Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants), and scored on Moon Bo-kyung (LG Twins)’ timely RBI single.
Kim Do-young, who stepped down with a ground ball to the third base in the top of the second inning, showed his presence again in the top of the fifth inning when South Korea was trailing 2-3. In the absence of a runner with one out, he hit Hayakawa Daiki’s first pitch and fired a large solo shot over the left-center wall fence.
Kim Do-young, who was called by KIA for the first nomination in 2022, is a right-handed infield resource with a batting average of 0.311 (379 hits in 1218 at-bats), 55 homers, 202 RBIs, 81 steals, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.915 in 358 games.
In particular, he played well in the 2024 season. In 141 games, he played a batting average of 0.347 (189 hits in 544 at-bats), 38 homers, 40 steals, 109 RBIs, 143 runs, and OPS of 1.067, leading KIA to V12. In recognition of this contribution, he swept various trophies such as KBO MVP and third baseman Golden Glove after the season.
But last year, it was not good. As many as three times, he was hampered by a hamstring injury and played only 30 games.
Fortunately, the recent appearance is not bad. He launched a solo shot in a practice game against the Samsung Lions at the second camp in Okinawa, the national team. Since then, he has also launched a home run on the same day, signaling his performance at WBC.
Meanwhile, South Korea is 3-3 against Hanshin as the top of the sixth inning is passing.
사진 확대 Photo = Yonhap News
[Lee Hanjoo, MK Sports Reporter]