“I was able to hit the home run at the height I wanted. I didn’t want to walk and go out on a walk. I felt really relieved after the bat flip and it felt good.”

The bat of Kim Young-woong, the 'hero' of the professional baseball team Samsung Lions, exploded.

On the 23rd, in a home game against the Kiwoom Heroes, Kim Young-woong recorded 3 hits, 1 RBI, and 2 runs, including his first home run of the season, and led the charge in defeating the NC Dinos pitching staff on the 25th.

Batting as the 7th baseman, Kim Young-woong raised his hitting sensation with a single to center field in the 2nd inning and a single to right field in the 3rd inning, and then exploded a grand slam in a 6th-inning chance with 2 outs and the bases loaded. On the 5th pitch of a slider against Kim Tae-kyung in a 3B-1S count, he pulled it and sent it into the right field stands. The moment he hit it, Kim Young-woong felt it would be a home run and he showcased a refreshing bat flip.

On that day, Samsung won decisively against NC with a score of 14-5, as four batters, including Lee Jae-hyun, Koo Ja-wook, Kim Young-woong, and Park Byung-ho, launched home runs. With this victory, Samsung whistled for three consecutive wins following the opening for the first time in 17 years.

After the game, Kim Young-woong said, “I think I was able to hit comfortably in all my at-bats since the first at-bat produced good contact.” He added, “I was able to hit the home run at the height I wanted. I didn’t want to walk and go out on a walk. I felt really relieved after the bat flip and it felt good.”

During the second camp in Okinawa, Japan, Kim Young-woong returned early due to a bruise on his right rib and was so focused on recovering from his injury that he couldn’t participate properly in exhibition games. He played in only one game.

He noted, “I couldn’t complete the camp due to the injury and couldn’t participate much in the exhibition games, so my rhythm was really off. I worked hard to identify the issues,” adding, “I judged that the biggest problem was a lack of confidence, so I watched hitting videos from good times to regain my confidence.”

Samsung's batting lineup exploded properly for three consecutive games. Kim Young-woong said, “The older players are hitting so well that I always step up to the plate comfortably.” What was his feeling after seeing Park Byung-ho's huge solo home run in the 8th inning? He commented, “If there had been no net, it would have flown out to the road. The line drive shot was really the best.”

Kim Young-woong, who invested a lot of time and effort into building his body over the winter, smiled contentedly, saying, “I am definitely seeing the effects of building my body. Both power and speed have improved. There’s nothing bad.”

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