Samsung's Kang Min-ho, A 38-Year-Old Catcher who is Unaffected by Heat Waves... July Batting Average 0.500
Koo Ja-wook gifts 'game-winning 3-run home run' to Doosan, who intentionally threw out 4 pitches, and Choi Hyeong-woo and 'LG grand slam' join forces, saying, "Let's work hard for a long time..."
Professional baseball catchers fear summer.
They have to endure the scorching heat while wearing heavy catcher's gear, which is hard to endure with bare hands.
Catchers sit down and stand up more than 100 times in the sweltering heat of over 30 degrees while wearing helmets, masks, and chest and leg protectors.
As a result, catchers’ batting performance in July and August tends to be lower than that of other positions. https://bit.ly/outlookindiacasino
Kang Min-ho (38), a veteran catcher for the Samsung Lions who debuted in professional baseball in 2004, also fears summer.
Although he has been wearing a catcher's mask for 21 years, he is still not used to fighting the scorching heat for more than three hours every day while wearing heavy equipment.
Kang Min-ho does not hide his physical limitations and the hardships of being a catcher.
After finishing the home game against Doosan Bears at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on the 14th, he said, "I feel like I don't have much time left until retirement," while sweating profusely.
Kang Min-ho fears summer, but he doesn't avoid it.
As the weather gets hotter, he becomes more armed with intense physical training and self-management.
Unlike other catchers, Kang Min-ho's batting performance doesn't decline much in the summer.
He has recorded a career batting average of 0.280 over the past 10 years from 2014 to this year, with a batting average of 0.285 in July and 0.282 in August.
Last year, his batting average from July to August (0.278) did not differ much from his season batting average (0.290).
He is showing even more brilliant results this season as his team is fighting for the top spot.
Kang Min-ho has recorded 14 hits, 4 home runs, and 12 RBIs in 28 at-bats in 8 games since July, with a batting average of 0.500.
He ranks first in batting average and home runs among batters who have at least 30 at-bats during this period.
It is hard to imagine that this is the summer performance of a catcher who is about to turn 40.
Kang Min-ho also hit a game-winning home run in the game against Doosan on the 14th, and had a great performance with 2 hits, 1 walk, 3 RBIs, and 1 run in 4 at-bats.
Kang Min-ho, who played in the game as the 4th batter and catcher, hit a game-winning 3-run home run over the left field fence against Lee Young-ha of Doosan in the top of the 7th inning with 2 outs and runners on 1st and 2nd base when the score was 1-2.
Doosan battery gave up Koo Ja-wook an intentional 4-ball automatic pitch and chose to play against Kang Min-ho, but Kang Min-ho responded to this choice by attacking Lee Young-ha's first pitch, creating a decisive 'one-hit'.
Samsung defeated Doosan 6-2 thanks to Kang Min-ho's home run and secured sole 2nd place.
Kang Min-ho, who was selected as the MVP after the game, did not give it much meaning, saying, "I think (the batting performance) is coming out now because my performance in the first half was not good."
He said about Doosan Battery rejecting Koo Ja-wook and facing him, "I thought it was natural to do that," and looked back, "I just thought a lot about what to do when I was on standby, and I swung confidently because I've been feeling good at hitting recently."
Kang Min-ho's home run that day was reminiscent of KIA Tigers Choi Hyung-woo's (40) grand slam on the 9th.
At that time, Choi Hyung-woo hit a grand slam against LG Twins, who had intentionally pitched out Kim Do-young, leading the team to victory.
LG and Doosan, neighboring teams that share Jamsil Stadium as their home, chose to face older players in a match five days apart and suffered a painful defeat. https://paste.toolforge.org/view/a4a2d3a9
Kang Min-ho said, "(Choi) Hyung-woo's home run really touched me," and "I often talked to Hyung-woo about working hard for a long time even as I get older, and I will work harder to keep that promise."
