Kia's absurd power loss due to abusive language to fans...Trade prospects have a golden opportunity
Aug 24, 2025
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KIA canceled Park Jung-woo and pitcher Kim Jung-yeop from the first-team entry prior to the match against the Gwangju LG Twins on the 23rd, and registered infielder Chung Hyun-chang and pitcher Kim Hyun-soo.
An official from KIA said, `We had several interviews with the player (Park Jung-woo) and went through the process of confirming the facts. What's clear is an altercation with a fan. He explained, "I removed it from the entry because I thought it was inappropriate."
Park Jung-woo poured cold water with a base runner at a crucial moment in the match against the Kiwoom Heroes in Gwangju on the 21st. Park Jung-woo was a runner on second base in the bottom of the ninth inning with one out and a good bases loaded, trailing 10-11. When Kim Tae-gun stepped down with a fly ball to the left field, Kiwoom left fielder Lim Ji-yeol found Park Jung-woo, who had a large lead on the second base, and threw to the second base immediately. It was faster for Park Jung-woo to be forced out of the second base than third baseman Kim Ho-ryeong tagged up and scored home. In an instant, the game ended with KIA's one-point loss.
Some KIA fans couldn't contain their anger and went to Park Jung-woo's SNS and criticized him. Some of the writings were mixed with swear words.
Park Jung-woo finally couldn't stand a message from a certain fan and responded with the same abusive language, but missed the opportunity to play in the first team, which he had difficulty recovering. Park Jung-woo injured his hamstring badly in May and had recently returned to the first team after a difficult rehabilitation period. KIA manager Lee Bum-ho was using Park Jung-woo as an outfield backup power, but Park Jung-woo had to be excluded from the power for unexpected and absurd reasons.
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Chung Hyeon-chang, a promising infielder, unexpectedly got a chance in the first team. Chung Hyun-chang changed his uniform last month when KIA made a 3-3 trade with NC. Chung Hyun-chang was also evaluated as an infielder with a very high future value when he was in NC, and KIA brought Chung Hyun-chang from a long-term perspective.
After graduating from Busan Technical High School, Chung Hyun-chang was nominated by NC with 67th place in the seventh round of the 2025 Rookie Draft. This year's Futures League performance is outstanding. He hit .316 (54 hits in 171 at-bats) with a 0.369 on-base percentage, one home run and seven RBIs in 60 games. Although his slugging power is poor, his contact ability and on-base ability have been sufficiently proven.
KIA manager Lee Bum-ho registered Chung Hyeon-chang, saying, `He played well in the Futures League. He's good at defense, too. First of all, since (Oh) Sun-woo becomes an outfield defense, I'm going to raise (Jung) Hyun-chang and check it out. Hyun-chang has to join the national team on September 9, so it will be difficult to see him in the expanded entry in early September. He is said to be in the best condition, he has a lot of RBIs, goes out and plays well when he has chances, and he is doing well in defense. I thought that other players would be able to cheer up if such a player came and showed the grit of a young player. I want a young player to show off his spirit."
KIA lost to LG 2-6 on the 23rd, losing four consecutive games and falling to eighth place. With the end of the game in a swamp of sluggishness, it is going to a typical bad team atmosphere, overlapping issues outside the stadium. Will Chung Hyun-chang be a new source of vitality for such a team.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
