In the 2020s, KIA’s Yang Hyun-jong (35) has been building a golden tower as a “living legend” in the KBO. In the past year or two, he’s been breaking all the KBO’s all-time starting pitching records, including his 164th career start on Jan. 1.
Yang Hyun-jong, born in 1988, is on the mound, while Choi Jung (36-SSG), born in 1987, and Son Ah-seop (35-Lotte), born in 1988, are at the plate. They are the new owners of the career records held by Lee Seung-yeop, Park Yong-taek and others from the 1970s, marking another era in professional baseball.스포츠토토
Choi scored his 1356th career run in the third inning against Daejeon Hanwha on June 6, breaking Lee Seung-yeop’s (Doosan) all-time league record of 1355 runs.
RBIs can only be scored with the help of teammates, unless you hit a home run, but it’s also a record that requires a hitter to consistently get on base.
Choi joined SK (now SSG) as a first-round pick out of Yushin High School in 2005 and hasn’t missed a year since his debut season, making KBO history in his 19th year. His consistency earned him the top spot.
Choi is on track to surpass Lee in home runs. With 454 career home runs as of July 7, he needs just 14 more to break Lee’s KBO record for most career home runs (467).
SSG has 29 games remaining. It’s not likely to happen this season, but the name of South Korea’s most prolific home run hitter could change at least early next season.
Son As-seob is also synonymous with consistency. He hit two home runs against the Changwon Kiwoom on July 7, putting him two away from 150 for the season. After hitting 150 hits in seven consecutive years until last year, tying Park Yong-taek (retired from the LG) for the only record in league history, Son is now on pace to become the first player in the league to hit 150 hits in eight consecutive years.
Son has been dubbed “Akbari” for his ability to get out of the way at the plate. After joining Lotte out of Busan High School in 2007, he began to establish himself as a starter in 2010 and showed off his ability to make contact, posting a triple-digit batting average for nine straight seasons. He is looking to surpass Park Yong-taek as the league’s all-time hit leader with his consistency rather than explosiveness.