329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games

Jun 24, 2025

329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games
KBO League KIA and Samsung match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 11th. The bases loaded with two outs in the sixth inning. KIA Kim Ho-ryeong hit a timely two-run hit. Gwangju =Song Jeong-heon, Reporter Song@sportschosun.com/2025.06.11/



329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games
The KBO League match between KIA and Samsung held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 10th. Director Lee Bum-ho, who is giving Kim Ho-ryeong advice on hitting. Gwangju =Song Jeong-heon, Reporter Song@sportschosun.com/2025.06.10/
"I used to really want to play a lot of games, but I've got a good opportunity and I'm just continuing to play."

KIA Tigers center fielder Kim Ho-ryeong, who is in his 11th year as a professional, is happiest now. He joined KIA in 2015 and had a hard time breaking his backup's eggs for 10 years until last year. The defense is second to none compared to the league's top center field, but the hit was weak to leap from the first team to the main line. The more he did that, the more Kim Ho-ryeong kept touching his batting form, and as a result, it became poisonous.

KIA manager Lee Bum-ho gave Kim Ho-ryeong a piece of advice to open his eyes to hitting. Manager Lee is a legendary hitter who hit 329 home runs in his career as a player. Since he has a good sense of hitting, he often points out points that can help the players, but Kim Ho-ryeong, who was in the first division last month, became a target this time.




An official from KIA said "It was a real move that Kim Ho-ryeong slightly changed his batting form with the coach's advice. Kim Ho-ryeong also saved the team.

What kind of advice was it.

When Kim Ho-ryeong had an opportunity in the first team, he talked a lot about hitting with coaches and coaches. When he first came to the first team, his shoulder and pelvis fell out and the ball missed. To compensate for the problem, I tried to hit it while putting my left foot inside. It felt awkward at first, but it was okay when I played the bat while practicing. We hit it well in the game. We'll do well if we do this nowIt occurred to me that ' So I think the steady performance with that form led to good results."




Kim Ho-ryeong was like a welcome rain during KIA's most difficult time at the beginning of the season. Coach Lee said, "Right fielder Na Sung-beom and left fielder Lee Chang-jin left due to injuries, while Choi Won-joon and left fielder Lee Woo-sung, who were expected to be the main center field, suffered from severe sluggishness in both attack and defense. I had to lean on rookie players such as Jung Hae-won and Park Jae-hyun. At this time, if Kim Ho-ryeong had not set the center line as a center fielder, KIA's No. 1 winning percentage in June would not have been possible.

Kim Ho-ryeong also flew in the batter's box. He had a batting average of 0.240 (23 hits in 96 at-bats) for the season, but he was very strong with 8 hits in 25 at-bats (0.320 batting average) in scoring position. In particular, he made a strong impression by recording 2 hits and 5 RBIs in 2 at-bats with the bases loaded. When he checked his batting average for the season, he made a nutritious hit in the scoring position to the extent that he thought 'It's lower than I thought'

329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games
The KBO League match between KIA and Samsung held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 10th. Director Lee Bum-ho, who is giving Kim Ho-ryeong advice on hitting. Gwangju =Song Jeong-heon, Reporter Song@sportschosun.com/2025.06.10/
329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games
The KBO League match between KIA and Samsung held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 10th. Director Lee Bum-ho, who is giving Kim Ho-ryeong advice on hitting. Gwangju =Song Jeong-heon, Reporter Song@sportschosun.com/2025.06.10/
Kim Ho-ryeong said "I had a good opportunity because the main players were hurt, but I tried to do my best to catch it as much as I had the opportunity. When I played in the game, I tried to get on base somehow and didn't make mistakes in defense, so I went out with that mindset. In the past, to be honest, when I changed my batting form a lot, I was very nervous when there was a runner on the floor. These days, however, a lot of games are played, and good results are produced even when there are no runners, so even when there are runners, they take the batter's box with the idea of only doing this. As a result, it seems that there is a good result. I'm a little greedy, but I want to raise my batting average from 280 to 290."

He vowed not to change his batting form anymore.

Kim Ho-ryeong said, `I really don't think I'll change my form right now. It's been bad for a few years before that, but I really feel good at bat now, so I'm not thinking of changing it. When I kept changing before, it didn't hurt even if I changed it. We can see the results (of our batting form) by playing a lot of games now. I won't change it because the results are good as the coach and coach told me," he said emphatically.

He also did not forget to thank the fans who hoped and cheered for Kim Ho-ryeong for a long time.

Kim Ho-ryeong said, `When I was in the batter's box, the fans cheered me up a lot. So I feel really good. You always supported me when I was bad. When I had this great opportunity, I will do my best to become a player who produces as good results as the fans think"I'm determined.

329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games
KBO League KIA and Samsung match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 11th. The bases loaded with two outs in the sixth inning. KIA Kim Ho-ryeong hit a timely two-run hit. Kim Ho-ryeong, who is being congratulated by his teammates after the end of the inning. Gwangju =Song Jeong-heon, Reporter Song@sportschosun.com/2025.06.11/
329 Home Run Legend coach's touch changed 180 degrees in his life as a backup for the rest of his life...I really wanted to play a lot of games
A match between SSG and KIA at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 22nd. Kim Ho-ryeong hits an RBI outfield fly in the top of the ninth inning. Incheon = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.06.22/






This article was translated by Naver AI translator.