Samsung Lions outfielder Kim Heon-gon has begun his return to the first team.
A mainstay of the Samsung outfield since 2017, Kim batted just 1-for-9 with a .224 average (43-for-43), one home run, 20 RBI, and 18 runs scored in 80 games last year. He also waived his free agent rights after the season.
In order to avoid a repeat of last year’s disappointment, he improved his body at the Okinawa Futures spring training camp in Japan.
Futures head coach Kim Jae-gul named Kim Hun-gon, Kim Dong-yeop, and Lee Sung-kyu (outfielders) as the camp MVPs, saying, “They set the tone for the beginning of the camp. I think they set a good example for the players who have just entered the professional stage.”
After preparing for the season with the utmost determination, Kim did not appear in the exhibition games or the regular season due to back pain. Instead, he has been rehabbing at the Samsung Training Center (STC) and Gyeongsan Ballpark.
In the Futures’ home game against LG at Gyeongsan Ballpark on Nov. 27, Kim went 0-for-2 with a run scored as a substitute for Yoon Jeong-bin.
He was scheduled to bat second in the Futures’ away game against Lotte at Sangdong Stadium in Gimhae on Sept. 29, but the game was canceled due to rain, postponing his first start of the season 온라인바카라.
Meanwhile, Kim, who joined Samsung in 2011 after playing at Jeju Gwangyang High School and Yeungnam University, has appeared in 777 games in the first team and is batting .266 with 36 home runs, 268 RBIs, 285 runs scored and 60 stolen bases in 2231 at-bats.
In 141 games in 2018, he had a career-high season, batting .305 (154-for-513) with 11 home runs, 71 RBI, 77 runs scored and 22 stolen bases. Always leads by example and has earned the trust of his teammates.