Professional baseball player Kim Do-young of the KIA Tigers has achieved 40 home runs this season.
On September 8, during a game against the Samsung Lions at Daegu Lions Park, Kim hit a solo home run in the sixth inning, bringing the score to 1-4.
Leading off the inning, Kim targeted the first pitch fastball from Samsung's second pitcher, Satoshi Miyamori, sending it soaring over the left field fence.
Having hit his 39th home run against the Lotte Giants on August 26, Kim reached this milestone after just seven games. This marks the first time in his career that he has hit 40 home runs in a single season.
While he missed the record for the youngest player to reach 40 home runs in the KBO League, held by Lee Seung-yeop (Yomiuri Giants coach), this home run allowed him to set several other records.
Kim became only the second player in KIA history to hit 40 home runs, following Tracy Sanders in 1999, and he is the first domestic player to achieve this feat.
In the KBO League overall, he is the first domestic player to reach 40 home runs since 2018, when Kim Jae-hwan (Doosan Bears) hit 44, Park Byung-ho (Nexen Heroes) hit 42, and Han Yoo-seom (SK Wyverns) hit 41.
Leading the league in home runs, Kim's latest home run increased his lead over LG Twins' Austin Dean, who has 36 home runs, to four.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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