Kia Tigers slugger Kim Do-yeong is seen on a plate during a baseball match against the Samsung Lions in Daegu on Sept. 8.NEWS1
Kia Tigers slugger Kim Do-yeong suffered a fracture, an injury throwing both the club’s late-season push and Korea’s campaign at the Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 into uncertainty.
Kim injured his nose after being struck by his own batted ball during Kia’s home game against the NC Dinos in Gwangju, South Jeolla, on Wednesday.
With Kia trailing 3-0 and a runner on first with no outs in the bottom of the fourth inning, Kim attempted to bunt the first pitch of his second plate appearance. The ball came off the bat awkwardly, shot toward his face and struck him on the nose. Kim left the field while trying to stop the bleeding and was replaced by pinch hitter Park Min.
Once the bleeding stopped, Kim was taken immediately to a hospital to undergo X-rays and a computed tomography scan.
“Tests showed that he suffered a nasal bone fracture,” the Tigers said. “It is not considered very serious. We will determine how to treat the injury after monitoring his condition and reviewing the doctors’ assessment.”
Kim is currently one of the league’s top hitters. He is batting .307 this season with 40 home runs, 99 RBIs and a 1.049 on-base plus slugging percentage.
In his game against the Samsung Lions in Daegu on Tuesday, Kim reached 40 home runs for the first time in his career. Kim and retired player Lee Seung-yuop, now a hitting coach for the Japanese Yomiuri Giants, are the only players in Korean league history to reach the 40-homer mark before turning 23.
Kim was expected to anchor Korea’s lineup at the Asian Games as a key hitter and the starting third baseman. The national team is due to begin training Monday.
Gold at the Asian Games would make Kim eligible for alternative service instead of 18 months of active military duty. He would only be required to undergo about four weeks of basic military training.
KT Wiz starting pitcher Ko Young-pyo throws a ball during a match against the Samsung Lions in Daegu on Sept. 9.NEWS1
Korea is seeking its fifth consecutive baseball gold in the Asian Games.
But the unexpected injury came just a week before the squad was due to leave for the Asian Games. The pace of Kim’s recovery could reshape plans for both the national team and the Tigers.
Kia lost 5-4 to NC after Kim left the game. The Gwangju club remained in fourth place, half a game behind the third-place LG Twins. The win pulled NC within 3.5 games of the fifth-place Doosan Bears and revived its hopes of securing a wild-card berth, which goes to the fifth-place team.
Elsewhere, the KT Wiz beat the Samsung Lions 2-0 in Daegu behind seven scoreless innings from ace pitcher Ko Young-pyo and veteran hitter Kim Hyun-soo’s go-ahead two-run homer. Second-place KT moved to within .001 in winning percentage of league-leading Samsung.
Hanwha Eagles is seen leading the game with 19-3 during a match against LG Twins in Daejeon on Sept. 9.NEWS1
In Daejeon, the Hanwha Eagles routed the LG Twins 19-3 for their fifth straight win. Hanwha starter Wang Yan-cheng, who will represent Chinese Taipei at the Asian Games, allowed one run over six innings to earn his 11th victory of the season against five losses. Third place LG, meanwhile, dropped its fourth straight game.
The SSG Landers beat Doosan 1-0 at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Songpa District, southern Seoul. Lee Ro-un, making just his second start since joining SSG in 2023, struck out nine over six-and-two-thirds scoreless innings to earn the first win of his career as a starter. Doosan was shut out despite ace Gwak Been striking out nine and allowing just one run over seven innings.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
