Why did you order center field now? 'It doesn't hurt even if you put it in your eyes' Kim Ji-chan, who has been reborn as a defense fairy. My colleagues have honey dripping in their eyes

Aug 30, 2024

Center fielder Kim Ji-chan jumped and caught Song Sung-moon's big hit with one out in the bottom of the 11th inning. Gocheok = Reporter Jung Jae-geun

The ball hit the fence but didn't miss it

It was a surprising good defense himself.

This is enough to give a photo-genic award every day. Samsung Lions center fielder Kim Ji-chan kept the team's victory with an exclamation point.

Samsung and Kiwoom Heroes played at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 29th. Samsung, which seeks to sweep three consecutive games, and Kiwoom, which seeks to avoid the humiliation of a sweep, played a tight 0-0 pitching match until the 10th inning.

Samsung's Koo Ja-wook, who came out as the first batter in the top of the 11th inning, pulled Kiwoom Lee Myung-jong's fifth changeup and easily crossed the right fence of Gocheok Dome. Samsung led 1-0 thanks to Koo Ja-wook's bat, who hit a home run for two consecutive days.

Koo Ja-wook's solo shot at the top of the 11th inning.

Samsung closer Kim Jae-yoon took the mound in the bottom of the 11th inning. Kim Hye-sung, the first batter, is treated with a fly ball to left field. However, after one out, Song Sung-moon was allowed a big hit.

Even if the ball that flew toward the fence in the middle did not hit a home run, the long shot was clear. Gradually it's fatal in the lead.

At this time, the defensive fairy and center fielder Kim Ji-chan, who appeared, jumped in front of the fence with fast batting judgment and surprising main focus. With Kim Ji Chan's glove, the ball goes in.

Kim Ji-chan, who landed after colliding with the fence, checked the ball in his glove. a surprising amount of good rain. All the players in the dugout raised their hands, pointed at Kim Ji-chan, and cheered.

Kim Jae-yoon, who defended the 1-0 victory by treating Choi Joo-hwan with a fly ball to right field, hugged Kim Ji-chan tightly. It's a moment where it doesn't hurt even if you put it in your eyes. It goes without saying that Kim Ji-chan was warmly welcomed by his teammates as much as Koo Ja-wook, who hit the final home run.

All players are welcoming Kim Ji-chan.

Thank you more than anyone else, Kim Jaeyoon

Kim Jichan's presence that doesn't hurt even if you put it in your eyes

Honey flowed from the back of director Park Jin-man.

A Successful Transformation. Kim Ji-chan, who made his professional debut in 2020, has played second base and shortstop all the time, but he has not been as stable in defense as he has been as good as he has been as a batter.

The decision he made after last year's season was to change to an outfielder. Throughout the closing camp and spring camp, he devoted himself to outfielder training. At the beginning of this season, he also had difficulty in judging the batting, but as he has gained experience, he is now showing a defense that is second to none.

A match between Samsung and Lotte at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on the 23rd. Samsung center fielder Kim Ji-chan catches Lotte Jung-hoon's ball with two outs and a third base in the seventh inning. Daegu = Reporter Song Jeong-heon

Kim Ji-chan has played in 104 games this season as a center fielder and played 763 innings, recording only two errors. The .991 ERA is sixth in the league. His batting got better as he agonized over defense. This season's batting average of 0.311 is Kim Ji-chan's career high performance. Kim Ji-chan, who has raised his batting average every year since his debut, had a batting average of 0.292 last year.

His ability to steal remains the same. It ranks fourth in the league with 37 stolen bases this season, and the success rate of stolen bases is 92.5%, ranking first among the top 10 players.

Samsung-Kium match held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 29th. Kim Ji-chan is succeeding in stealing second base at the top of the fifth inning when Yoon Jung-bin was at bat with one out and one out.

Kim Ji Chan's turn to center field. It was the best decision to solve the players themselves and the club's concerns at once.

Samsung, which has won four consecutive games, narrowed its gap with the No. 1 KIA Tigers to 4.5 games. After a break on the 30th, two consecutive games against KIA are waiting at Daegu Lions Park on the 31st and 1st. It's your last chance to fight for first place.

cjg@sportschosun.com