Professional baseball player Yasiel Puig (35) of the Kiwoom Heroes announced his resurgence with a huge home run.
On the 22nd, Puig started as the designated hitter in the game against the Doosan Bears in the '2025 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League' held at Seoul's Gocheok Sky Dome, recording 1 hit, 1 home run, 2 RBIs, and 1 run in 4 at-bats.
In the bottom of the second inning, Puig, who led off, struck out swinging on three pitches. However, in the fourth inning with two outs and one runner on base, Kiwoom was leading 2-0, and Puig showed a completely different appearance. Facing starting pitcher Choi Seung-yong, the left-hander, Puig connected on a high curveball at 114 kilometers per hour with a 2 balls, 1 strike count, hitting a two-run homer that cleared the left field wall. The line drive traveled 130 meters.
Thanks to Puig's home run and the strong performance of starting pitcher Ha Young-min, Kiwoom won 5-4, ending a two-game losing streak. Puig hit his fourth home run of the season, experiencing the thrill of a home run for the first time in 15 games since the game against NC on the 4th.
In 2022, Puig played 126 games with a batting average of .277 (131 hits in 473 at-bats), 21 home runs, 73 RBIs, 65 runs scored, and 6 stolen bases, leading the Kiwoom to the Korean Series runner-up finish. He returned to the Kiwoom this year but struggled with a batting average of .202 (20 hits in 99 at-bats), 3 home runs, 12 RBIs, and 13 runs scored in 5 games before this game, with an OPS of .588. As Kiwoom is using two foreign hitters this year, there are calls to replace Puig with a foreign pitcher to strengthen the mound.
Kiwoom manager Hong Won-ki noted in an interview before the game, "For now, since we decided to go with two foreign hitters before the season, it is not yet the time to discuss success or failure. I believe that if the players recover their condition, the direction we envisioned will manifest. Puig is communicating with the hitting coach to address issues. While improvement may not happen all at once, I believe we are heading in a positive direction. I trust that we will find a breakthrough through practice."
In response to manager Hong Won-ki's trust, Puig hit a home run that day without hesitation. In a post-game interview, Puig said, "I had been swinging at bad pitches a lot. Today, I approached the game with the mindset to only hit pitches in the zone. I tried not to miss a mistake pitch, which led to a good result."
Working daily with hitting coach Oh Yun to regain his batting form, Puig said, "I am thinking about only hitting pitches that come into the zone at the plate. Today, I trained while wearing a band. I have trained to improve my leaning during batting. Coach Oh Yun advised that my body is currently leaning too far forward. He also encouraged me, saying I am doing well enough, so I should have confidence. I want to repay the faith that many people have in me."
"I really appreciate the support even during tough times," Puig said. "I apologize for not being able to show good results in the games. I will work hard to show better performances in the future."
[OSEN]