The KBO League has three 100 RBIs, but it may become the RBI king with 80 RBIs in 62 years. If Murakami, who is tied for first place, goes like this, 78

By Changkie, Min

Sep 05, 2024

The KBO League has three 100 RBIs, but it may become the RBI king with 80 RBIs in 62 years. If Murakami, who is tied for first place, goes like this, 78
Yamurt center hitter Murakami. He is alone in first place in home runs and tied for first in RBIs, but is sluggish compared to last year. Photo capture = Yakult Swallows SNS
The KBO League has three 100 RBIs, but it may become the RBI king with 80 RBIs in 62 years. If Murakami, who is tied for first place, goes like this, 78
Yomiuri No. 4 hitter Okamoto has failed to add an RBI in the last five games. It is tied with Murakami for first place in this category with 65. Photo capture =Miuri Giants SNS
NC Dinos foreign hitter Matt Davidson hit his 41st home run of the season against the Kiwoom Heroes in Changwon on the 4th. In the bottom of the first inning, he hit two runs over the middle wall against Heroes starter Enmanuel Heyesus with one out and one on the first base, paving the way for a 13-6 victory. Davison, who is leading the home run, tied for second in the category with 104 RBIs. LG Twins' Austin Dean, who has 118 RBIs, is in first place, and KIA Tigers' Choi Hyung-woo is on par with Davison. Austin and Choi Hyung-woo failed to add RBIs on the 4th.

As of the 4th, Austin, Davison and Choi Hyung-woo have more than 100 RBIs. KT Wiz Mel Rojas Jr. and SSG Landers Guillermo Herredia follow with 99. It is notable that foreign batters are at the top. By the 4th, 11 players had more than 90 RBIs.

Compared to last year, 'Tago-tugger' has intensified. Last season, Hanwha Eagles' Noh Si-hwan scored 101 RBIs to take the title. A total of four players went over 90 RBIs. In 2022, five players, including Lee Jung-hoo, recorded triple-digit RBIs.

The Japanese professional baseball, which has been driven by a strong 'thugo-taser', is in a very different atmosphere from the KBO league. In particular, Central League hitters are struggling.

Yakult Swallows foreign hitter Jose Osuna hit his 16th home run against the Yomiuri Giants at Kyocera Dome in Osaka on the 4th. In the fourth inning, when the score was tied 0-0, he hit a two-run home run to the left with no outs and first base to lead the team to a 3-0 victory. The game was hosted by Yomiuri with different leagues on the home turf of Orix Buffaloes, a member of the Pacific League.

Osuna, who had two RBIs, had 64 RBIs. Kazuma Okamoto, the fourth batter of the Yomiuri Giants, who tied for first in RBIs, and his teammate Munetaka Murakami by one point.

Hanshin Tigers second-year outfielder Shota Morishita follows them with 61. A total of four players including Morissita have more than 60 RBIs. 요코하마 베이
The KBO League has three 100 RBIs, but it may become the RBI king with 80 RBIs in 62 years. If Murakami, who is tied for first place, goes like this, 78
Osuana, a foreign batter of Yakult. On the 4th, he hit a two-run home run against the Yomiuri Giants and posted 64 RBIs. Photo capture = Yakult Swallows SNS
Stars' heavy hitter Shugo Maki ranks fifth to sixth with 59 and Hanshin's flagship hitter Yusuke Oyama with 57.

It is the second half of the season when a fierce ranking fight is underway. Hiroshima Carp has 26 games and Hanshin has 20 games left. If this continues, he may become the RBI king even if he is below 80 RBIs. If the current pace continues, Murakami will finish the season with 78 RBIs, Okamoto and Osuna with 76 RBIs, Maki with 71 RBIs and Morisita with 70 RBIs.

Okamoto and Murakami have not had an RBI in their last five games. Morissita and Maki have added two RBIs in each of their past five games.

Okamoto hit 97 in 2020 and 113 in 2021 and topped the RBI list for the second consecutive year. Murakami topped the list with 134 RBIs in 2022 and Maki with 103 RBIs in 2023. Compared to recent years, we can see how sluggish RBI production has been this year.

In 1962, the last 80-run RBI king came out. In that year, Yomiuri's Oh Sadaharu (Wang Jeong-gi, chairman of the Softbank Hawks) ranked first with 85 RBIs. At that time, Yomiuri played 134 games, nine fewer than now.

The KBO League has three 100 RBIs, but it may become the RBI king with 80 RBIs in 62 years. If Murakami, who is tied for first place, goes like this, 78
Hanshin's second year outfielder Morissita. It ranks fourth in RBIs after Okamoto, Murakami and Osuna. Photo capture = Hanshin Tigers SNS
Meanwhile, the Pacific League is a little different. Softbank Hawks' Hotaka Yamakawa has 30 home runs and 87 RBIs. Both home runs and RBIs are overwhelmingly No. 1. Chiba Lotte Marines has 17 RBIs more than foreign hitter Neftali Soto.





huelva@sportschosun.com

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