It was a chaotic game, a continuation of disordered situations. Outfielder Kwon Hee-dong (35) also wore the catcher’s mask again after 11 years. Even with a backup catcher available, Kwon Hee-dong had to wear the catcher’s mask.

On the 14th, NC faced the KIA Tigers in a regular season game at Changwon NC Park, staging a late-game comeback but ultimately lost 8-9. They fell behind 4-9 before the bottom of the ninth, but a grand slam by Park Gun-woo narrowed the gap to 8-9, providing a tense moment.

However, during the game, there were many chaotic situations, including Choi Jung-won being transported to the hospital after being hit by a head injury from Choi Ji-min. In the top of the ninth, the situation arose where outfielder Kwon Hee-dong had to wear the catcher’s mask.

On that day, backup catcher Kim Jung-ho put on the catcher’s mask first. Starting catcher Kim Hyung-jun began the game on the bench. Kim Jung-ho continued to wear the catcher’s mask well into the middle of the game.

However, trailing 3-8 in the bottom of the eighth, they seized an opportunity with a double from Park Gun-woo and a single from Son Ah-seop, putting runners on first and third with no outs. They then redeemed one point with a ground ball by Han Seok-hyeon to second base. After that, with one out and a runner on second, Kim Hwi-jip struck out, leading to Kim Jung-ho’s turn at bat. The NC bench brought in left-handed batter Oh Young-soo, but he was retired on a line drive to first base, ending the inning.

As the top of the ninth began, everyone expected Kim Hyung-jun to wear the catcher’s mask. However, the player who donned the mask was Kwon Hee-dong. Kim Hyung-jun was on the bench but was in no condition to play that day. The team noted, “He had a strain on the middle of his back during pre-game training, making it difficult for him to play.”

The last situation arose where Kwon Hee-dong had to wear the catcher’s mask. NC had considered giving Kwon Hee-dong backup catching duties due to multiple injuries in the catching lineup. Kim Hyung-jun was removed from the roster after sustaining a laceration to his left pinky finger from a pitch during a game against the Doosan Bears on the 23rd of last month. Park Se-hyuk also went down with back pain before the game against Hanwha on the 30th. Furthermore, the third catcher, Ahn Jung-yeol, was also hit by a pitch that injured his wrist during the Hanwha game on the 31st.

With only Kim Jung-ho available in the catcher lineup, thoughts of Kwon Hee-dong taking over as an emergency catcher emerged. As the situation with the catchers became urgent, Kim Hyung-jun had to return to the first team without completely removing his stitches.

Nevertheless, Kwon Hee-dong had to wear the catcher’s mask. He already had experience as a catcher. Until his junior year at Gyeongju High School, he also played the catcher position and has professional experience as a catcher. He started as the seventh outfielder in the game against Lotte on June 27, 2014, but when all the catcher resources were exhausted in the eighth inning, Kwon Hee-dong had to don the catcher’s mask starting from the bottom of the eighth.

That day, Kwon Hee-dong had to take on the role of a first-string catcher again after 11 years, which was 4,005 days later. In the top of the ninth, Kwon Hee-dong, in sync with Kim Si-hoon, allowed a home run to the lead-off batter Kim Gyu-sung. He recorded the out against Lee Chang-jin with a pop-up to right field, but was hit by a single again from Park Chan-ho. He induced a ground ball to second base by Choi Hyung-woo and struck out Hwang Dae-in. He managed the situation as a catcher without awkwardness and safely led to the bottom of the ninth.

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