"I started playing baseball because I admired KIA's Kim Sun-bin" Gwangju Ilgo's Kim Sun-bin aims to be the top-ranked catcher [Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.

"It may be hard to believe, but I started playing baseball because I liked KIA's Kim Sun-bin."

A player with the same name as Kim Sun-bin (37, KIA Tigers), a former KBO League batting champion, will challenge the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft. The protagonist is Kim Sun-bin (19) of Gwangju Ilgo, who is called the top catcher prospect.

Kim Sun-bin met with StarNews at Gwangju Ilgo on the 2nd and shared an interesting story: "I became interested in baseball after watching KIA win the championship in 2017. I liked Kim Sun-bin the most. Since we share the same name, I became interested, and I officially started playing baseball in the winter of fifth grade."

KIA's Kim Sun-bin is a living legend who has appeared in 1,764 career KBO games and recorded 1,783 hits. In the same year that Kim Sun-bin of Gwangju Ilgo fell in love with baseball, KIA's Kim Sun-bin won the batting title with a .370 average and became the top contributor to the team's Korean Series championship.

Kim Sun-bin of Gwangju Ilgo, who is 20 years younger, plays as a catcher. Kim Sun-bin smiled, saying, "When I was young, I didn't know that catcher was a difficult position. It just looked cool, and as my skills improved in middle school, I started to enjoy it. I like being a catcher because it feels like leading the game and playing the game."

According to the Korea Baseball and Softball Association (KBSA), Kim Sun-bin stands 183 cm tall and weighs 89 kg. He is a catcher with a solid build and strong batting that can send the ball to any part of the outfield. He has been a regular starter since his first year and has already played 73 regular-season games as of June 4, with a career batting average of an impressive .355 (228 at-bats, 81 hits).

With 6 home runs, 62 RBIs, an on-base percentage of .468, a slugging percentage of .566, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 1.034, he boasts outstanding batting among catchers. Especially in his second year, he recorded a .398 average in 26 games, nearly reaching .400, which even sparked talk of him being selected early in the first round.

KBO club scout A said, "Kim Sun-bin's batting is real. While standards vary by team, a catcher must have a decent bat to become a regular in the pros, and Kim Sun-bin scores highly in that regard. He was a bit disappointing in this year's Golden Sajakgi with a .133 average, but his mechanics are good. He is a medium-to-long-range type who produces many doubles and handles breaking balls well. He is a catcher who can become a regular in the pros."

Currently, KBO clubs are hesitant to draft Kim Sun-bin in the first round due to his catching defense. Although he has solid catching fundamentals built through long experience, his arm is considered average, and his throwing ability is inconsistent, which is seen as a drawback. Entering his third year, defensive concerns have begun to affect his batting, causing him to slow down slightly.

KBO scout A evaluated, "The defensive part is lacking. His blocking is fine, but it's hard to say his arm or throwing is good. Recently, there are also concerns about his throwing mechanics, so we need to watch him a bit more."

The player himself is aware of these views. In fact, knowing this too well, he practiced too hard, which had a negative effect. Kim Sun-bin said, "I raised my pace too quickly this year. In batting, I had a strong desire for extra-base hits, and in defense, I tried to improve my throwing ability. As a result, I threw the ball too much and got injured."

He continued, "I was originally confident in my batting, so I left it alone, thinking it would naturally improve. But since I kept thinking only about defense, both aspects were affected. Now, my injured shoulder has almost fully recovered. I think my blocking and catching are fine, and if I maintain the basics of my throwing, it will get even better," he candidly shared his feelings.

There are also positive opinions about his disappointing defense. Kim Sun-bin was first noticed as a catcher. A KBO scout who is a former catcher said, "Catching defense can improve enough with continued practice. Kim Sun-bin can definitely start as a catcher in the pros. And since he has the batting talent to become a regular catcher, teams in need of a catcher won't easily overlook him."

This draft includes many promising catcher prospects besides Kim Sun-bin. Kim Sun-bin said, "There are not just one or two good catchers; there are so many that I think things will work out. I will just do my part. Of course, being the top-ranked catcher is my goal. I've had strengths with the bat since my lower grades, and I can hit many triples, so I'm not slow. I also feel stable in defense," he said with determination.

As a catcher, he looks up to Yang Eui-ji (39, Doosan Bears), one of the best catchers in the KBO, and as a hitter, he models himself after major leaguer Kazuma Okamoto (30, Toronto Blue Jays). If he joins the KBO League, he hopes to face Hanwha Eagles players.

Kim Sun-bin said, "Yang Eui-ji and Okamoto are my role models. Okamoto's hitting style suits me well, so I watch a lot of his videos. If I join the KBO, I want to face Kang Baek-ho and Heo In-seo. I thought Heo In-seo was great since I was young, and he's still doing well these days, so I'm curious about how he has developed in the pros. The player I want to face is An Woo-jin," he expressed his excitement.

He added, "My dream is to go to KIA. I also want to meet Senior Kim Sun-bin. Of course, I don't know what will happen, so I will do my best at whichever team picks me."

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*This content was translated by AI.