Kim Sung-wook talks about the final out.
The NC Dinos won the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League against the Kiwoom Heroes on May 22 at the Gocheok SkyDome in Seoul, South Korea.
NC won 4-3 on the day. After defeating Kiwoom for the second consecutive day, NC clinched the Winning Series with two straight wins.
Kim Sung-wook, who pinch-hit in the bottom of the seventh inning, came to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 3-3 ninth and launched a solo home run off Kiwoom reliever Joo Seung-woo. It was his eighth home run of the season.
However, the circumstances of the home run were a bit confusing. Kim Sung-wook’s shot was not caught by Kiwoom left fielder Dawson, but a spectator with a glove on top of the outfield fence caught the ball. If the fan’s glove had gone over the fence toward the ground, it could have been a double. After three minutes of video review, Kim’s initial home run was upheld.
“I actually didn’t know where the ball went,” Kim said of his home run. When I was running the bases, (Song) Sung-moon said the ball got stuck in the fence. The umpires didn’t make any special gestures, so I couldn’t tell if it was a double or a home run.”
“I wasn’t sure (it was a home run), I was just waiting for the call,” said Kim Sung-wook, “but I felt like (the fan) didn’t catch it from the front, but from behind. But I was nervous because I’ve had home runs overturned before,” he laughed.
Seung-woo Joo’s 147-kilometer-per-hour fastball cleared the fence. “I thought my timing has been off lately,” Kim said. I talked to the coaches and they said, ‘Don’t make it,’ so I just thought, ‘He’s a fastball player, so even if he strikes out, don’t miss the fastball,’ and I think that led to a good result.”
When we say “make it happen,” we’re talking about consciously pushing blows. “I haven’t been playing well lately, so I’ve been trying to keep pushing during training. Last week, I even felt a little better because I was trying to push. “But my coach told me that 스포츠토토 I shouldn’t try to push too hard and just hit it hard,” he said, “so I think I was focusing too much on that.
The start of the season was actually not bad. After a disappointing March, Kim picked up his hitting in early April, and by mid-April, he was batting in the mid-twenties. He was actually getting a lot of playing time in the outfield. However, his pace dropped sharply at the end of April, and by early May, his batting average had fallen below the double digits. Along with his slump, his playing time dwindled.
“My confidence dropped and I was stressed because my batting average dropped so quickly, and I was thinking, ‘It’s going to be the same again,’” Kim said. “But I thought that if I had a bad day, I would have another good day. But this year, my home run pace is good, so lately I’ve been thinking, ‘I’m not a high batting average hitter, so let’s turn it around with confidence.
There was also a method he used to calm himself down. Listening to the sound of the rain. “I always listen to the sound of the rain before I go to sleep,” says Kim. It’s like meditation, and it helps me not think about anything. If it’s bad, I keep thinking about it, and 에볼루션 바카라사이트 I get stressed, so I try not to think about anything,” he says, adding, ‘I fall asleep quickly with the rain sound on.’
There are also technical changes. “After two strikes, I bat with a ‘no-step’ approach. I started doing it at the end of last year, and there’s something about it that makes me feel more comfortable.” ”This year, a lot of home runs are coming after the second strike. I don’t like it, but I feel like I have my own method after two strikes,” he said.
“We got swept against KIA (last weekend) and this series was important, but we still managed to get the win. It feels good to be able to contribute to that,” he said.