Kim Do-young, who wore a Kia uniform through the rookie draft, made his first start in a practice game between KT and Kia at Gijang Hyundai Motor Dreamball Park in Busan on the afternoon. Kia Tigers’ Kim Do-young said in an interview before the game, “I have a desire to be a rookie king. “If not, it’s a lie, and I’ll try to make the Kia Tigers the Rookie of the Year award for the second consecutive year,” he said. When do you feel like you’ve become a professional? When asked, Kim Do-young said, “It feels real to be here with the seniors I saw on TV wearing uniforms. “Since the team is the priority, I will try to win the team,” he said. 스포츠토토킹
Kim Do-young, who even expressed her ambition for the “Rookie King” before the game, was very determined. Of course, it was an unofficial debut, but he was focused throughout the game. In his first at-bat in the top of the first inning, KT starter Bae Je-sung struck out three pitches. In the top of the second inning, his second at-bat, he got a walk from KT Lee Jung-hyun in a persistent mount fight and got on base to first base. His first hit was a clean left-handed hit against Lee Jung-hyun in the top of the fourth inning.
He also showed a sense of stability in defense in the game. He caught Ko Min-sung’s fast ball in the top of the fifth inning and made it a clean out. Applause broke out in the Kia dugout. In the top of the ninth inning, he finished the batter’s box with a foul fly by the first baseman. He finished his first professional warm-up with one hit and one walk in four at-bats. In a practice match against Samsung in Daegu on the 14th, Kim Do-young recorded a multi-hit and improved his sense of hitting. In the practice game on the 15th, he was out with a grounder to second base in his first at-bat. In his second at-bat in the top of the third inning, he hit his first home run against Samsung’s Choi Ha-neul. Although it was a practice game, the players of the Kia dugout were more pleased with Kim Do-young’s first home run.
