'6 games batting average of 0.400 + OPS of 1.000' KIA Yoon Do-hyun will prove his status as a genius hitter by receiving a full-fledged opportunity in the first team in 2025
'6 games batting average of 0.400 + OPS of 1.000' KIA Yoon Do-hyun will prove his status as a genius hitter by receiving a full-fledged opportunity in the first team in 2025
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Will Yoon Do-hyun (21) of the KIA Tigers receive a full-fledged opportunity in the first division starting next year?안전놀이터
When he was in high school, he was named the best shortstop in the Gwangju area along with Kim Do-young. After entering Gwangju Jeil High School, he garnered attention by batting average of 0.284 in the late 20s in 2020. In 2021, he improved to a new level with a batting average of 0.391 with one home run, 10 RBIs and an OPS of 1.025 in 17 games.
Kia has been keeping an eye on Yoon's growth. In the 2022 rookie draft, Kia selected Yoon as the 15th overall pick in the second round. Kia recruited Kim for the first round and signed all of its players including Yoon Do-hyun, who is the biggest infielder in Gwangju.
Contrary to expectations, Yoon's professional career was not smooth. In the exhibition game in his first year as a member of the team, he fractured his right metacarpal bone and underwent surgery, and devoted himself to rehabilitation for one year. In 2023, he had a hamstring problem and played in only 11 Futures League games. He played in only one game in the first team.
The tragedy was repeated this season. He suffered another mid-body injury during a Futures League game in April and missed the entire first half of the season. After returning from injury in August, Yoon recorded a batting average of 0.257 (19 hits in 74 at-bats) with a three-run OPS of 0.660 in 22 games in the Futures League.
After struggling with an injury for a long time, Yoon was finally called to the first team last September. Although he made only six games at the end of the season, his performance was strong. Yoon showed outstanding offense with a batting average of 0.407 with one homer, eight RBIs, and an OPS of 1.000 in six games. Yoon achieved multi-hits in all but the game against the Lotte Giants on Sept. 25.
He displayed outstanding performance at the end of the season, but failed to make the roster of the Korean Series. Lee chose Kim Gyu-seong over Yoon Do-hyun as his backup infielder. Although he failed to make the roster of the Korean Series, he made us highly anticipate his performance in the 2025 season.
KIA's infield team is relatively solid with second baseman Kim Sun-bin, third baseman Kim Do-young and shortstop Park Chan-ho. Yoon does not have time to squeeze in, but the season is long. Yoon, who can play all infield positions excluding first baseman and is also excellent in hitting, can be selected by Lee Bum-ho as it is an attractive resource for Kia. Attention is focusing on whether Yoon will continue his stellar performance in the 2025 season.