'Lotte, a miracle of ten million' — Na Gyun-an collides at first base, facing major injury crisis; Na Sung-beom's muscle strength and explosiveness prevent it. "His throwing arm was heading toward the ground, and I reacted instantly..." [Gwangju Field Report]

*This content was translated by AI.

KIA Tigers' Na Sung-beom (37) showed both compassion and instinct, preventing a major injury.

On the 2nd, KIA defeated Lotte Giants 5-4 in a home game of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field.

With this win, KIA escaped a three-game losing streak, improving to 29 wins, 1 draw, and 25 losses, securing fourth place. Conversely, Lotte fell into a three-game losing streak, remaining at 21 wins, 1 draw, and 31 losses in ninth place.

The game featured several tense moments. KIA starting pitcher James Neill recorded a personal single-game high with four hit-by-pitches, while Lotte catcher Son Seong-bin collided with the fence while attempting to catch a foul ball that bounced behind him.

The most heart-stopping moment for fans occurred in the bottom of the third inning with two outs and a runner on second base. A ground ball hit by Na Sung-beom headed toward the area near first base. Lotte first baseman Na Seung-yeop fielded the ball and threw it to Na Gyun-an, who was moving toward the base cover. Na Gyun-an's posture collapsed as he tried to catch the low-flying ball, and Na Sung-beom's shin and Na Gyun-an's face nearly collided as they both headed toward first base.

Fortunately, Na Sung-beom narrowly avoided Na Gyun-an, who fell while stepping on the first base. However, the incident did not end there. Na Gyun-an, unable to reduce his speed, continued to overlap with Na Sung-beom's path.

At that moment, Na Sung-beom demonstrated agility by holding onto Na Gyun-an's uniform until the end while also avoiding Na Gyun-an's hand. Had Na Sung-beom failed to grab Na Gyun-an or only stepped on his foot, a serious injury could have occurred.

After the game, Na Sung-beom recalled, "Gyun-an lost his balance and fell toward me. At that moment, it seemed like his throwing arm would hit the ground, so I instantly grabbed his uniform. However, Gyun-an is quite large, and I was wearing gloves while running, so I couldn't grab him as I had intended."

Na Gyun-an stands 186 cm tall and weighs 109 kg, while Na Sung-beom is 183 cm tall and weighs 100 kg; both are large athletes. However, Na Sung-beom's strength, built through years of weight training, allowed him to withstand Na Gyun-an until the end, enabling both players to avoid serious injury. Especially for Lotte, where Na Gyun-an has been active as a native starting first baseman, this was a moment of miraculous fortune.

Na Sung-beom smiled and said, "I did grab his uniform, but it wasn't easy since we both have significant weight. Also, his throwing hand could have overlapped with my spikes. If that had happened, I would have stepped on him, so I jumped in surprise. I thought I avoided it very well, but I only regret that the result was an out."

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*This content was translated by AI.