"Yes, He’s the Hitter We Remember"... Kim Do-yeong’s Back-to-Back Blast Delights National Team and Kia Tigers

"The Kim Do-yeong we know is back."
On the 26th at Kadena Baseball Stadium in Okinawa, Japan, manager Ryu Ji-hyun of the South Korea national baseball team could not hide his satisfaction after a scrimmage against the Samsung Lions. His praise was filled with conviction for Kia Tigers "prodigy hitter" Kim Do-yeong, who has finally emerged from a long tunnel of injuries and fired a clear signal of a complete comeback.
Batting third and starting at third base, Kim Do-yeong dominated the field with three hits in five at-bats, including a home run. Leading off the fifth inning, he jump-started the offense with a sharp single that split the gap between third base and shortstop. After the lineup turned over and he came up again, he followed No. 2 hitter Ahn Hyun-min’s grand slam with a solo shot to left field.
It was his first home run of the exhibition schedule and a thunderous back-to-back blast that instantly shattered the silence that had hung over his bat in previous games. The moment the ball left his bat, it brought back memories of his explosive 2024 swing, when he swept the regular-season Most Valuable Player (MVP) race in near-unanimous fashion.

This was not just another home run in a practice game. For Kim Do-yeong, this arc carried special meaning. After ruling the KBO League in 2024 as its best hitter and looking unstoppable, 2025 turned into a nightmare. His once ironclad hamstrings kept betraying him. He tore a hamstring twice in a single season and ultimately had to accept the bitter reality of being ruled out for the year in August.
It was an unexpected setback for a prodigy who had seemed destined to walk an easy path to stardom.
However, after shutting down his season early and throwing himself into grueling treatment and rehab, he regained his health. Receiving reports that Kim Do-yeong’s body was back on track, Ryu Ji-hyun boldly selected him for the national team. Having completed the first training camp in Saipan without issues, Kim moved on to Okinawa, where he has been playing full-speed in live action and erasing the question marks surrounding his condition. Even on defense, the biggest concern, he eased worries by playing five innings at third base against Samsung, steadily increasing his workload and giving the national team’s infield some breathing room.
If the national team is breathing a sigh of relief over Kim Do-yeong’s full-scale resurgence, there is another group quietly rejoicing even more: manager Lee Bum-ho and the Kia Tigers fans.
Right now, Kim Do-yeong accounts for what could almost be called "half of the lineup" for the Kia Tigers. With veteran slugger Choi Hyoung-woo and key infielder Park Chan-ho having moved to other clubs, Kim is the one absolute pillar Kia can trust and lean on.

The situation is not entirely bleak. New foreign hitters James Naile and Harold Castro, who were initially a source of concern, have been producing better-than-expected results in camp. Na Sung-bum, who must anchor the middle of the order, has also been quietly building up his form with no injury news so far.
The pieces are starting to fall into place. If James Naile and Harold Castro do their part and Na Sung-bum stays healthy, and on top of that "the heart of the lineup" Kim Do-yeong regains his old destructive power, Kia will suddenly have a surprisingly well-balanced and potent batting order. That would give them the driving force they need to withstand the departures of Choi Hyoung-woo and Park Chan-ho while minimizing the damage.

Having finally broken free from the chains of the injuries that bound him for so long, Kim Do-yeong is ready to take off. His one and only goal this year is to get through the upcoming World Baseball Classic (WBC) unscathed and then complete the regular season in full health.
"The Kim Do-yeong we know is back."
That single sentence is the best possible news this spring for manager Lee Bum-ho and Kia Tigers fans, and it is what makes their hearts race as they look ahead to this WBC.
jsi@fnnews.com Jeon Sang-il Reporter