Park Hae-min of the LG Twins dives to catch a fly ball by Lotte Giants outfielder Victor Reyes in the third inning at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on April 15.NEWS1
LG Twins captain Park Hae-min became only the fourth player in KBO history to steal 500 bases, and he did it in the game that ended his team's eight-game losing streak.
The defending Korean Series champions had lost eight straight, from a Sept. 24 loss to the Lotte Giants through a loss to the Kia Tigers last Monday, both at home, and had slipped out of No. 3 in the standings. Park set out to change the mood.
The center fielder bunted his way on in his first at-bat, then singled and stole second in the second inning for his 500th steal as the Twins beat the NC Dinos 6-1 at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Tuesday. He singled and stole again his next time up for his 501st and finished with three hits and two runs.
"I had to get on base somehow," Park said of the bunt. "On the second pitch, I saw the first baseman playing back and thought I could pull it off."
After the game, NC Dinos coach Kim Jong-ho gave Park a quick hug when the two crossed paths, and NC captain Park Min-woo raised a hand to Park on his way to the team bus.
"I hope you make it all the way to 600," Lee Dae-hyung, a SPOTV commentator who called the game, told him.
Kim won the KBO stolen base title in 2013, and Lee won it four straight years from 2007 to 2010 with LG, while Park Min-woo stole 50 bases in 2014. All three had run the bases and dived into the dirt themselves, and they knew better than most what it takes to reach 500.
Park Hae-min of the LG Twins during a game with the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in western Seoul in April.LG TWINS
"I think 500 is the number that puts your name among the great base stealers," Park said. "I am happy I could reach it this season. I told myself to do my best at what I can do. I thought I had to get on base and get moving. Whenever I saw even the slightest opening, I tried to run boldly. I was just trying to do my best in every moment."
Park is also the first player in KBO history to steal 20 or more bases in 13 straight seasons.
"It is a record you can only keep if you truly stay healthy," he said. "I saw Dae-hyung, who I played against, have his run cut short by injury when he could have kept going. In any case, you have to get on first to get a chance to steal, and I think I have held up well. I do not know how far I can go from here, but I want to go as far as I can without getting hurt."
Park signed with the Samsung Lions in 2012 as an undrafted development player and made his top-league debut as a pinch runner. For him, speed was a way to survive as a professional. He has since won five stolen base titles and moved to LG as a free agent in 2022.
Park Hae-min of the LG Twins slides during a game with the NC Dinos at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on August.LG TWINS
"Stealing bases and defense are inseparable from me," he said. "As I have said before, without them I could not have become a free agent or played for the national team. They are the weapons that let me keep playing baseball."
Lee, who sits one place ahead of Park on the KBO career stolen base list, once advised him on his base running.
"He asked me about a few things in the past, and I gave him some advice, but not much," Lee said.
Park, however, says Lee helped him.
"There was a time when my steals dropped," Park said. "Before that, we only knew each other in passing, but I got in touch to ask for advice, and he told me a lot of good things."
As Park sees it, the way to repay Lee is to pass his 505 career steals. Lee Jong-beom sits above him with 510, and Jeon Joon-ho holds the KBO record with 549. Park also wants to break Choi Tae-won's KBO record of 1,009 consecutive games played.
Park Hae-min of the LG Twins gets back to first base on a pickoff attempt by Doosan Bears starter Choi Won-joon at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on July 21, 2024.NEWS1
"I would like to pass Lee Dae-hyung, Lee Jong-beom and even Jeon Joon-ho's record and get all the way to 600," Park said. "It would be great to get there the year after next, together with the consecutive games record."
Park is now passing on what he has learned. Kia Tigers infielder Kim Do-yeong has said advice from Park at the 2026 World Baseball Classic helped him.
"This year, I could tell he had picked up the knack and was putting it to use," Park said. "He used to go all out every time. I told him not to go at 100 percent from the start but to send signals to his body, as if he were shifting up through the gears. Before, Do-yeong would throw his body into it first and get hurt, but I think he took it to heart."
For the rest of the season, Park's goal is to get the Twins back up the standings.
The Twins beat the Doosan Bears 7-5 on Wednesday, but Kia also won, so the Twins, at 77-63-1, remain level on games with the Tigers at 76-62-2. Kia still holds the No. 3 spot based on winning percentage and controls its own destiny.
The No. 3 team skips the wild-card round of the postseason.
Nevertheless, the Twins still have a shot, because the two teams close the regular season against each other at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju next Monday.
"Not a single player has given up," Park said after Tuesday's game. "Our last game is against Kia in Gwangju, so the feeling has really taken hold that we should play the rest of our games well and then have it out with them at the end. Before that, we will try to do well in our three remaining games so that nothing is decided before the finale."
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.
