Doosan Bears' Lim Jong-sung (20) decorated his debut home run with a game-winning grand slam.

On the 22nd, Lim Jong-sung opened as the ninth third baseman in the game against the SSG Landers during the '2025 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League' held at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, recording 3 hits, 1 home run, 4 RBIs, and 1 run from 4 at-bats.

In the third inning with one out, Lim Jong-sung, batting first, recorded his first hit of the game with a single. Although he grounded out to the third baseman in the fifth inning with two outs and a runner on first, he hit another single in the seventh inning with one out and runners on first and second.

Entering his fourth at-bat with two outs and the bases loaded in the eighth inning while trailing 2-4, Lim Jong-sung crushed a four-seam fastball at 149 km/h from right-handed reliever Kim Min to hit a comeback grand slam that just cleared the right field fence. This was Lim's debut home run. According to the club's TrackMan data, the ball speed was 158.4 km/h, and the distance was 108.5 m.

Thanks to Lim Jong-sung's comeback grand slam, Doosan achieved a 6-5 victory, ending their five-game losing streak. Lim became the star of the game. In a post-game interview, he noted, “I didn’t realize it at first when I hit the ball, but when I saw it, I thought it might go over. My legs were shaking the whole time. I still feel nervous now,” expressing his feelings about decorating his debut first home run with a grand slam.

Lim Jong-sung, who joined Doosan as the 22nd pick in the third round of the 2024 rookie draft, had only made one appearance in the first team last year, with 3 at-bats and no hits along with one walk. However, this year, he seized the opportunity to play in the first team due to injuries to starting infielders, recording a batting average of .257 (9 hits in 35 at-bats), 1 home run, 6 RBIs, 2 runs, 1 stolen base, and an OPS of .628 in 15 games. In this game, he made a solid impression on the fans with his debut home run, hit as a grand slam.

Lim Jong-sung became the 20th player in KBO League history to record a grand slam for his debut home run. For Doosan, he is the fourth to do so, following Song Won-guk (June 23, 2001, against SK in Jamsil), Choi Joo-hwan (June 14, 2012, against Lotte in Busan), and Oh Myung-jin (April 27, 2025, against Lotte in Jamsil).

Lim Jong-sung smiled, saying, “I never imagined my debut home run would be a grand slam. I feel really happy hitting something I never imagined. I think this is my first grand slam in baseball. I don’t remember it.” He continued, “I thought to just hit confidently without thinking. Hitting coach Park Seok-min also said to feel at ease and hit confidently since I got 2 hits before. So I swung confidently.”

Lim Jong-sung stated, 'The team has been on a losing streak, so the atmosphere could have been low.' However, he added, 'I’m very happy that I hit a home run like this to help lift the team’s spirits.'

Lim Jong-sung, who is playing in the first team for the first time this year, expressed, “I prepared a lot since winter, and I think I’m starting to get some rewards for my efforts. So I want to work harder and prepare better. I think it’s also luck that the injuries to infield players provided me the opportunity. I want to seize the chance when it comes.”

After the game, Lim Jong-sung received the ball from his debut home run and smiled, saying, “I will cherish this for a lifetime.”

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