*This content was translated by AI.
It was forgotten due to three consecutive group league defeats, but it advanced to the semifinals in the first tournament in 2006 and became the runner-up in 2009. At the heart of it were key stars. This time, Moon Bo-kyung (26, LG Twins) took over the baton.
Moon Bo-kyung started as the fifth designated hitter in the fourth Group C match of the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) at Tokyo Dome, Japan on the 11th, and led Korea to a 7-2 victory with three hits, four RBIs and one run from five times at bat, including a two-run home run.
What made the scenario to advance to the quarterfinals, which seemed almost impossible, was possible except for seven pitchers on the mound and Moon Bo-kyung in the batting lineup.
Lee Seung-yeop in 2006 and Kim Tae-kyun in 2009 overlap. With the performance of "Asian Home Run King" Lee Seung-yeop, South Korea won in the group stage, especially before the top of the eighth inning, when they were being dragged 1-2 against Japan, they fired a two-run shot against Hiroto Ishii, a special season finisher, to make Tokyo Dome silent.
In the second round, he also hit a two-run home run from the first inning of the first game against Mexico and fired a solo shot to the best left-hander of the time against the "Dream Team" U.S., breaking his will to chase. He hit the final hit in four consecutive games, and the U.S. blocked Lee Seung-yeop by hitting a three-run home run by Choi Hee-seop after sending him through an intentional pitch.
At that time, his performance was much higher with a batting average of 0.333 (8 hits in 24 at-bats), five homers, 10 RBIs and eight runs, an on-base percentage of 0.414, a slugging percentage of 0.958, and an OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of 1.372 in seven games. He won the home run and RBI title and was named the All-Star of the tournament as the first baseman.
It was Kim Tae-kyun's turn in 2009. Kim Tae-kyun, who was the home run king of the KBO League in the previous season, was not selected for the national team due to Lee Dae-ho and Lee Seung-yeop's absence, but he took the opportunity and pushed out Lee Dae-ho to be the main first baseman and the fourth batter.
He lacked cannon ability compared to Lee Seung-yeop, but he was not far behind in solver ability. In particular, when Japan suffered a cold game of 2-14 in the first round, he made the only score a two-run shot, and in the ranking match again, he gave South Korea a 1-0 victory with an RBI final double.
In the first game of the second round, he beat Mexico to the final solo shot, and in the match against Japan, he played on third base, including intentional pitches, driving South Korea's 4-1 victory. Kim Tae-kyun, who led Venezuela to the runner-up with three runners on third base, including a two-run home run, hit 0.345 (10 hits in 26 at-bats) with three homers, 11 RBIs, nine runs and eight walks, an on-base percentage of 0.486 and a slugging percentage of 0.690 and an OPS of 1.176 in nine games. Home runs, RBIs, and runs were all ranked first and were similarly selected as first baseman All-Stars.
This time, Moon Bo-kyung took over the position of the national team's best hitter along with the main first baseman. LG's main third baseman Moon Bo-kyung was evaluated as a first baseman resource and made the final entry. He has a lot of experience as a first baseman, but considering the hit, some said that Roh Si-hwan (Hanwha) would be more destructive, but Moon Bo-kyung's value exploded more in the hit.
Moon Bo-kyung, who led the country's victory with two hits, five RBIs and two runs in three at-bats from the first inning against the Czech Republic, performed consistently against the team and opposing pitchers with one hit and one walk in two at-bats against Taiwan, and one walk and two RBIs in three at-bats against Japan. In the match against Australia, it clearly showed who the best hitter in Korea is now.
Moon Bo-kyung decorated both the beginning and the end of the match against Australia, which confirmed Korea's advance to the quarterfinals. After hitting a leading two-run shot, Moon Bo-kyung encouraged his teammates by shouting "I can do it," and it was also Moon Bo-kyung who handled the ball that soared high at first base with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning with only one out count left until the 7-2 victory following a series of RBIs. Moon Bo-kyung roared high in the sky, throwing his captured glove and could not hide his hot tears.
So far, he has a batting average of 0.538 (7 hits in 13 at-bats), overwhelming Lee Seung-yeop and Kim Tae-kyun, with two home runs, 11 RBIs and three runs, an on-base percentage of 0.625, a slugging percentage of 1.154 and an OPS of 1.779. Although it is difficult to put much meaning on the ratio stat since it played only four games, it is ranking first in this category by sweeping the top RBI players Lee Seung-yeop (10 RBIs in seven games) and Kim Tae-kyun (11 RBIs in nine games) in 2006 and 2009. Second place is Venezuela's Luis Arraez (7 RBIs, San Francisco).
Moon Bo-kyung, who signed a contract with an annual salary of 480 million won this season, was proudly listed at the top of the RBI category. U.S. captain Aaron Judge (New York Yankees) signed a nine-year, $360 million contract (about 529.1 billion won), equivalent to receiving $40 million in annual salary and about 58.7 billion won. Judge has a batting average of 0.333 (4 hits in 12 at-bats), two homers, five RBIs and four runs, a on-base percentage of 0.500, a slugging percentage of 0.833 and an OPS of 1.333. In this WBC, Moon Bo-kyung is establishing himself as a much more valuable hitter.
Starting with Lee Seung-yeop and Kim Tae-kyun, Korean baseball made history in 2006 and 2009. How high will the Korean national team, led by Moon Bo-kyung, who boasts an all-time RBI pace, fly this time.
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*This content was translated by AI.
