Professional baseball player Kim Jae-hwan (37) of Doosan Bears sadly failed to achieve a cycling hit but continued to show excellent hitting form since his return to the first team.

On the 24th, Kim Jae-hwan started as the fifth designated hitter in the game against Kiwoom Heroes of the 2025 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League held at Seoul's Gocheok Sky Dome, recording 3 hits, 1 home run, 5 RBIs, and 1 run scored in 5 at-bats.

In the top of the first inning, with two outs and runners on first and second, Kim Jae-hwan entered his first at-bat and hit a 2-RBI triple off Kiwoom's right-handed starting pitcher Kim Yeon-joo, giving his team the early lead. He continued his good hitting form with another hit in the third inning with two outs.

In the fifth inning, Kim Jae-hwan grounded out to the second baseman with one out, but in the seventh inning, with one out and runners on first and second, he hit a three-run home run that sailed over the right-centerfield fence off right-handed reliever Park Joo-seong, marking his third home run of the season. The home run traveled 130 meters.

Having recorded a triple, a hit, and a home run in his previous three at-bats, Kim Jae-hwan was just one double shy of achieving a cycling hit when he stepped up to the plate in his last at-bat with two outs in the ninth inning. Once again facing Park Joo-seong, Kim Jae-hwan aimed for the first pitch but was unfortunately caught on a ground ball to the second baseman, thus failing to achieve a cycling hit. Doosan won the game 9-3, securing their second consecutive victory and winning the midweek series.

After the game, Kim Jae-hwan reflected on his last at-bat, saying, "I didn't really think about achieving the cycling hit in my last at-bat. I was familiar with this situation since it has happened a few times before. I don’t think being conscious about it helps; rather, I just stepped into the box without much thought."

"Of course, it's disappointing," Kim Jae-hwan said with a smile. "If a better pitch had come in, the outcome would have been different. However, that’s not something I can control. So, I won't think about it anymore. Once I was out, I didn’t think about the cycling hit."

Kim Jae-hwan has never achieved a cycling hit in the KBO League. However, during his time with the Army team in 2010, he set a remarkable record by achieving cycling hits twice in the Futures League. "In fact, most players in their baseball careers never achieve a cycling hit," Kim Jae-hwan said, laughing. "Still, I’ve done it twice in one season in the second team, so I wonder if that’s why it hasn’t happened for me yet."

After earning free agency eligibility following the 2021 season, Kim Jae-hwan re-signed with Doosan for a total of 11.5 billion won over four years, becoming the first in Doosan's history to sign a contract worth over 10 billion won. He is currently experiencing his final season under the free agency contract. However, his start has not been great. After the opening, he recorded a batting average of .200 (11 hits in 55 at-bats), 1 home run, 6 RBIs, and 7 runs scored with an OPS of .570, leading to his removal from the first team roster on the 11th and being sent to the second team.

Since returning to the first team on the 22nd, Kim Jae-hwan has been showing great hitting performance. After hitting a home run in his first game back, he recorded multiple hits in the game on the 23rd and then hit 3 hits, 1 home run, and 5 RBIs in this game.

"Actually, I felt good even before going to Icheon (the second team). I didn’t do anything special in Icheon," Kim Jae-hwan clarified. "Instead of focusing on technical aspects, I did more running and basics. I ran a lot like an athletics team. I tried not to think too much and instead focused on just running. Since it’s still very early in the season, doing something technical wouldn’t have made a difference. I cleared my mind a lot while running."

After achieving good results (6 hits, 3 home runs, 6 RBIs) in the series against Kiwoom, Kim Jae-hwan stated, "The hits are coming out as I imagined. Even if I get out, I’m still producing good contact, which feels great," expressing confidence in his performance for the rest of the season.

[OSEN]