Once again the protagonist of the 'Kim Jae-hwan Derby,' he takes the field as the fourth hitter designated hitter against his former team, Doosan... Manager says, "I consider it a game just like any other" [Jamsil On-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Jae-hwan (38, SSG Landers) faces his home fans as an away player against Doosan Bears at Jamsil. He will bat fourth against Doosan.

Kim Jae-hwan is set to start as the fourth designated hitter in the visiting game against Doosan at Jamsil Stadium in Songpa-gu, Seoul, on the 8th, as part of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League season.

Kim Jae-hwan began his professional career with Doosan after being selected in the second round of the 2008 draft. He spent 15 seasons exclusively with Doosan, enduring a long period of obscurity. During that time, he won the home run champion title and the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, and as a free agent (FA), he secured a lucrative four-year contract worth up to 11.5 billion won.

Kim Jae-hwan, who had been in a clear downward trend, found an opportunity to gain FA eligibility after the previous season. However, there was one clause: after finalizing a contract, he would engage in priority negotiations with Doosan, and if no agreement was reached, he would be released as a completely free agent without being bound by compensation rules.

Kim Jae-hwan expressed a desire to experience a turning point in his career with a new team, but his previous year's salary of 1 billion won made it difficult for other teams to sign him. Had he applied for FA, he would have been classified as a B-grade player, requiring his new team to either pay 2 billion won (200% of his salary) or provide one compensation player in addition to the 25th protected players.

Ultimately, no agreement was reached, and Doosan had no choice but to release Kim Jae-hwan as promised. Kim Jae-hwan signed a two-year contract worth up to 2.2 billion won with SSG Landers, which utilizes a hitter-friendly field as its home stadium.

Criticism arose over the alleged exploitation of regulations, and resentment grew among fans. In response, Kim Jae-hwan stated via his social networking service (SNS), "I am well aware that there have been many voices of criticism and disappointment regarding my choice. I will never take lightly any words or reprimands sent by the fans. I sincerely apologize for causing you pain with my performance and choices that fell short of expectations."

Although he prepared diligently for the season, he managed only a .116 batting average (10 hits in 86 at-bats) in 25 games. He was eventually sent down to the minor league and called up on the 7th, making a start against NC Dinos where he delivered a one-RBI sacrifice fly.

Manager Lee Sung-yong said, "If he is called up, he must be used. Coach Lee Myung-gi stayed by (Kim) Jae-hwan's side and worked hard with him. Both the club and the coaching staff did their best." He added, "There is nothing we can do about the pressure. There are no technical issues. The difficulty arose simply because the results did not come through."

SSG will field Park Sung-han (shortstop), Jung Jun-jae (second baseman), Choi Jeong (third baseman), Kim Jae-hwan (designated hitter), Guillermo Heredia (left fielder), Oh Tae-gon (first baseman), Jo Hyung-woo (catcher), Chae Hyun-woo (right fielder), and Choi Ji-hoon (center fielder). The starting pitcher is Anthony Venegas.

Before the game, Manager Lee said, "I consider it a game just like any other. I didn't say anything special. He probably feels the same way." Regarding the previous day's game, he noted, "I viewed it positively. Even when he struck out, he should have been able to recover. Even with runners on first and third, he showed awareness and tried to make contact to score at least one run, which was not bad. In his final at-bat, hitting a fly ball to left field was slightly late, but he still executed his swing. Watching his practice swings, his hands moved consistently." He expressed his expectations.

Kim Jae-hwan, facing temporary replacement foreign pitcher Wes Benjamin, took on the heavy responsibility of batting fourth. Much attention is focused on this unique scene of him meeting his former team as an away player at the familiar Jamsil Stadium.

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*This content was translated by AI.