Kang Baek-ho's 'Shock' Injury Left, Triple Bad News To Gold Reversal

That's so cheeky. Can Kang Baek-ho (24, KT Wiz) express 2023 better than this.

Kang Baek-ho left the team's strength ahead of the fall baseball due to an injury. Kang Baek-ho was injured during the batting in his own Cheongbaek match at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 26th.

Kang Baek-ho, who played in the team's Blue and White match ahead of the playoff (PO) against the NC Dinos, went to the hospital after feeling pain in his right side after playing his first at-bat in the second inning. A KT official said in a phone call with Star News, "Kang Baek-ho was injured on his right side while hitting in a practice game," and added, "As a result of the hospital examination, he was diagnosed with damage to his right abdominal muscles."

The club did not affirm the recovery period and left a possibility of returning to the fall baseball, but manager Lee Kang-chul later declared Kang Baek-ho's "season out."

It is easy to predict even if it is not a statement made by director Lee Kang-chul. Players who are usually diagnosed with internal abdominal muscle damage need two to three weeks to return to normal. KT, which has reached the PO, will immediately clash with NC from the 30th and play only until the 15th of next month even if it reaches the Korean Series.

Even if he returns within two weeks with remarkable resilience, KT had to play autumn baseball without Kang Baek-ho, considering the absence of actual games.

Kang Baek-ho drew attention as a big star who will carry Korean baseball with Lee Jung-hoo (25, Kiwoom Heroes) beyond KT. Since the first season in 2018, he has proudly won the Rookie of the Year award with 29 home runs and has since been active as a .300 hitter for the third consecutive year with sophistication.

During this period, he won the Golden Glove twice and spent his career high season in 2021, giving the team its first championship since its foundation.

However, he fell into a shocking slump with a batting average of 0.245 last year. Coincidentally, it happened after participating in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and receiving a lot of criticism for the 'gum controversy'. Kang Baek-ho, who participated in the tournament at the time, performed well with a batting average of 0.308 in seven games, but was spotted chewing gum with a dull expression in a losing situation, and became a target of baseball fans. At that time, commentator Park Chan-ho pointed out the scene and said bitterly, which sparked fire.

There were injuries, of course. He only returned in June due to a fracture of his right pinky toe (metatarsal bone) ahead of the season, playing 62 games, and was unlucky to rupture his hamstring once again even after returning. He also had the worst season with a batting average of 0.245. The fallout also led to salary negotiations. Even when the spring camp was just around the corner, the contract was difficult, and eventually, it was cut 47.3% from 550 million won last year, and signed 290 million won, which was halved.

Unfortunately, it was like a prelude to Kang Baek-ho's unfortunate 2023 move. Despite his bad luck last season, he played at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in March with the Taegeuk mark, but he created a shocking scene that surprised the world baseball community.

After hitting a double in the seventh inning in the first group match against Australia, he fell off the base and was absurdly out while celebrating with excitement. In the end, the national team, which lost by one point in the match, suffered a painful elimination in the first round.

There was no problem with grades. He did his best to prepare for the season and led Korea's batting line with Lee Jung-hoo with a batting average of .500 (7 hits in 14 at-bats). However, the impact of "ceremony death" was too great, and Kang Baek-ho's performance was already not important. More criticism arrows were directed at him than any other player, including the manager. There were not a few people who criticized raw and personal attacks.

After returning to the team, he bowed his head, saying, "I'm sorry to the people," but the fans' eyes did not change easily, and maybe because of this aftermath, Kang Baek-ho had a bad news for Kang Baek-ho, who was struggling with the slump. Kim Hyun-soo made an "arirang throw" in the bottom of the fifth inning when his team was holding a narrow lead of 3-2 against the LG Twins in Jamsil on May 18, and Park Hae-min, who penetrated to third base with a quick foot, dug through the gap and stepped home. It was a shocking play that led to a 3-3 tie, which led to the peak of criticism against Kang Baek-ho.

Kang Baek-ho also failed to endure mentally in the twisted and twisted season. Kang Baek-ho, who complained of extreme stress, played in only four games in June and eight games in July, and took a rest in August. At the time, KT manager Lee Kang-chul said, "I think (Kang) Baek-ho needs to give him more time. Mental strength is important now. You need to strengthen your mental strength to train. I'm going to give Baekho time for now," he defended his student.

Kang Baek-ho, who returned in September, has clearly changed. Until the end of the season, he regained his batting sense with a batting average of 0.286 and two home runs and seven RBIs in 14 games, and helped the team, which was on the rise at the end of the season, go straight to the PO.

In 71 games, Ryu Joong-il, the national team's head coach, showed faith in the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, taking him to the end, with a batting average of 0.265, eight home runs, 39 RBIs, and 31 walks, with an on-base percentage of 0.347, a slugging percentage of 0.416, and an OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of 0.763.

In the Asian Games, he also produced strikeouts in the early stages and suffered a slump with no hits in 10 at-bats, and criticism from fans only intensified. But it was "genius is genius." Kang Baek-ho regained his batting sense by hitting a hit against Thailand and Japan, where South Korea is in crisis, and in the second round of the Super Round against China, which is on the final line, he showed a perfect revival by playing 3 hits, 1 walk, and 1 RBI in 4 at-bats, including a home run. He also had a hit in the final against Taiwan, helping him win four consecutive gold medals.

It was 2023, which seemed to end with such a happy ending, but the shocking news of the injury was delivered to the car preparing for the ending.

Coincidentally, it was the day when Lee Kang-chul threw his PO. Coach Lee said, "We were able to confirm NC's potential in the postseason once again. Since it is a team that is organized throughout the offense and defense, we will not let our guard down and play the game as we prepared, he said. "We will do our best to stand on the best stage with our fans like we did two years ago."

However, KT lost its main hitter before it even started and entered the fall baseball league. Kang Baek-ho spent a year wondering if he could be this anxious. It is autumn when Kang Baek-ho has no choice but to cheer for the team's good performance from behind.

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