Kim Dong-joo’s Remarkable Comeback

“The best batter in Korean pro baseball this year is Kim Dong-joo (31, Doosan Bears),” said Noh Chan-yeop, a coach of LG Twins. His compliment described Kim as the “most outstanding player with batting and defense skills combined.”

KIA Manager Seo Jeong-hwan has also appraised Kim. “He is a multi-hitter who knows how to go with the pitch, whether it comes inside or outside.”

It seems that Kim Dong-joo, once disgracefully dubbed “the lazy genius,” has definitely changed for the better.

Doosan Manager Kim Kyeong-moon also confirmed that Kim Dong-joo is having his best season ever, since his professional league debut in 1998. “Dong-joo’s batting is reaching its peak. At least ten of his hits that have dropped in the outfield in Jamsil Stadium would have been homers in other local stadiums. I want to give him extra points in that he is in charge of the third base in defense, a position where you face a lot of vicious groundballs.”

As of June 4, Kim is ranked high in all fields of batting; he has a batting average of .335 (third in league), 10 home runs (fifth), 34 RBIs (third), 30 runs (third), and an on base percentage of .459 (second). Some predict that he will do better than 2000, his best year thus far, where he recorded 31 homers, 106 RBIs and a .339 batting average.

The source of his strength is his commitment to baseball. When he takes batting training, he focuses all of his nerves on whether the ball gets over the wall or whether the bat hits the ball in the middle. Then he mumbles to himself, “homer” or “single to the left,” rating what he has just hit.

Han Yeong-jun, a Doosan coach, said, “A ball hit by Dong-joo sounds different. He is a player who knows how to load a bat with strength.”

After this season, Kim will become a free agent. Some already speculate that he will break the record of Shim Jeong-soo, who received a six billion won contract fee when he moved from Doosan to Samsung in 2004, or that he will transfer to the Japanese league.

Kim Dong-joo, however, calmly answered, “It is not yet time to talk about the free agent issue. My prior goal as of now is to help my team proceed to the postseason.” His comment, in itself, tells why he is so trusted by his teammates.