Doosan Bears' 11th-year power-hitting prospect Kim Min-hyuk hit a home run after 448 days.

Doosan Bears excluded infielder Kim Min-hyuk, catcher Kim Gi-yeon, and pitcher Kim Jeong-woo from the first team roster on the 23rd when there were no games.

Kim Min-hyuk, on the 22nd, in the 8th match of the season against LG Twins in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League, started as the 8th first baseman and made 2 at-bats, 1 hit, 1 home run, 1 RBI, 2 walks, and 2 runs scored.

Kim Min-hyuk appeared as the lead-off hitter in the bottom of the 5th inning when trailing 0-10, launching a home run to chase down the score against LG starter Song Seung-gi. After taking a strike on the first pitch, he smashed a 145km high fastball on the second pitch for a 129.1m left-field home run. This was his 9th career home run, coming 448 days after the last one on March 31 of last year against the KIA Tigers.

Kim Min-hyuk walked with two outs on first base in the top of the 6th, and in the top of the 8th, while a wild pitch allowed the runner on third base to score, he again managed to get a walk, achieving three times on base.

Kim Min-hyuk reported a hit for the first time in 79 days since the match against Lotte Giants on April 4, and succeeded in reaching base for the first time in 19 days since the match against KIA Tigers on June 3. This was the match that left the most intense impact this season, yet unexpectedly, he was notified of being sent to the minor leagues the next day.

Kim Min-hyuk, after graduating from Gwangju Dongseong High School, was selected 16th in the second round of the 2015 rookie draft by Doosan as a right-handed power-hitting prospect. However, despite being evaluated as a power-hitting prospect, he has consistently felt the high wall of the first team, posting a career average of .219 with 48 hits, 9 home runs, 33 RBIs, and 24 runs scored in 120 games since his debut in 2017. His career high occurred in 2022, recording an average of .284 with 5 home runs and 16 RBIs over 38 games. His salary this year is 34.2 million won.

This year, Kim Min-hyuk, who had fluctuated between the minor leagues, got a chance to showcase his skills when he was called up to the first team on the 3rd, the first day of interim manager Jo Seong-hwan's appointment. Jo explained his decision to promote Kim Min-hyuk, saying, "I don’t think we’ve had the opportunity to see Kim Min-hyuk for many days. To make a judgment, we need to see him relatively consistently for over a few at-bats. He is a player with potential. I want to give him a time that he can accept."

However, Kim Min-hyuk could not capitalize on the opportunity at that time. He recorded no hits with 1 walk and 1 strikeout in two at-bats against KIA on the 3rd, and remained silent with no hits in four at-bats the next day. On the 5th against KIA, he struck out and was replaced by pinch hitter Kim In-tae. After coming on as a substitute in the match against the Lotte Giants on the 6th, he was notified of being sent to Icheon on the 7th. He had 0 hits and 2 strikeouts in 7 at-bats across 4 games.

After spending 11 days in the minor leagues for reconditioning, Kim Min-hyuk was called up by manager Jo again on the 18th. However, this time he was given only 5 days. Following no hits and 1 strikeout in 3 at-bats against Samsung Lions on the 18th, he hit a hopeful home run against LG on the 22nd, yet found himself back in Icheon just six days later.

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