Home > Sports > Baseball

Kim Kyung-moon, Yang Hyeon-jong chase history in close of KBO season

Published: 20 Jul. 2025, 16:54

Hanwha Eagles manager Kim Kyung-moon, left, chats with third base coach Kim Jae-gul during a Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game against the LG Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on May 27, 2025. [YONHAP]

The second half of the KBO League season is under way, with the standings race still as tight as it was in the first half. As the campaign continues, a number of seasoned veterans — both managers and players — are poised to write their names into the league’s record books, with major career milestones in reach.

Hanwha Eagles manager Kim Kyung-moon, 67, is closing in on his 1,000th career win, a feat achieved by only two others in KBO history. As of Saturday’s game against the KT Wiz, Kim has 992 wins, 33 draws and 851 losses across 1,874 games. He previously recorded 512 wins with the Doosan Bears from 2004 to 2011 and 384 wins with the NC Dinos from 2013 to 2018.

Since taking the reins of the Eagles in May 2023, Kim has added nearly 100 wins in less than two full seasons. With the Eagles sitting atop the standings, his climb to the four-digit mark seems all but guaranteed.

Only Kim Eung-yong with 1,554 wins, who built the Kia Tigers dynasty, and Kim Sung-keun with 1,388 wins, the former SK Wyverns manager, have reached the 1,000-win plateau. Left-handed legends Yang Hyeon-jong of the Kia Tigers and Kim Kwang-hyun of the SSG Landers are also chasing milestones on the mound.

Yang is aiming to become the first KBO pitcher ever to notch 100 or more strikeouts in 11 different seasons. Excluding his 2021 stint in the United States, Yang has already posted 10 straight 100-strikeout seasons since 2014, tying him with KT Wiz manager Lee Kang-chul and former Doosan Bears pitcher Jang Won-jun. With 73 strikeouts already this year, he needs just 27 more to stand alone atop the list.

Kia Tigers' ace Yang Hyeon-jong pitches against the Kia Tigers at Gwangju Kia Champions Field on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

Kim, meanwhile, is just 28 strikeouts away from becoming the third pitcher in KBO history to record 2,000 career strikeouts, following Yang and Song Jin-woo. The 37-year-old, now in his 16th KBO season, has 1,972 strikeouts as of Saturday.

Veteran Samsung Lions catcher Kang Min-ho, 40, is on track to become the first player in KBO history to appear in 2,500 career games. Already the league’s all-time leader in games played, Kang has 2,446 appearances under his belt. If he plays in 54 of Samsung’s remaining 56 games, he will hit the 2,500 mark.

He’s also chasing two more records: becoming the seventh KBO player — and first catcher — to hit 350 home runs, and joining Choi Jeong of the Landers and Choi Hyoung-woo of the Tigers as just the third player to hit double-digit home runs in 16 consecutive seasons. As of Saturday, Kang has 346 career home runs and eight this season.

Mel Rojas Jr. of the KT Wiz takes a swing during a Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game against the Kiwoom Heroes at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, Gyeonggi, on July 1. [YONHAP]

Wiz slugger Mel Rojas Jr., 35, is rewriting the record books for foreign hitters. Having already set a new record for most career home runs by a foreign player with 177, Rojas is now closing in on the all-time marks in hits, RBIs and runs scored among foreign-born players. Those records, all held by Jay Davis from his seven seasons with the Hanwha Eagles, stand at 979 hits, 591 RBIs and 538 runs. Rojas, in his sixth season with Wiz, has 899 hits, 563 RBIs and 503 runs — all within striking distance in the second half.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY BAE YOUNG-EUN [[email protected]]