“How can he be so admirable?” One home run short of the historic 20-20 mark, he laid down a first-pitch surprise bunt instead... Park Jae-hyun’s great sacrifice moved Kia Tigers fans to tears

[Financial News] Just one home run. For a baseball player holding a bat—especially one just a single hit away from the historic 20-homer, 20-stolen-base milestone, which might never come around again in his career—it would be only natural to be consumed by the prospect.
But the youngest member of the Tiger squad, in his second year, chose gritty, selfless commitment to getting his team to the postseason over personal glory. This is the story of Park Jae-hyun, 21, whose actions touched the hearts of Kia Tigers fans.
The final game of the regular season against the LG Twins was held on the 12th at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field. A win would send the team straight to the semi-playoffs in third place; a loss would drop it to fourth and into the perilous wild-card round. It was a fateful, high-stakes showdown.
That day, Park Jae-hyun’s bat was on fire. In his first at-bat in the bottom of the first, he crushed a solo shot to right field to seize the initiative. With that home run, his 19th of the season, Park (21 stolen bases) was left just one homer short of the 20-20 club, the hallmark of a power-speed player.

In the fateful bottom of the eighth, with the score tied 2-2, Park Jae-hyun stepped up to the plate as the leadoff hitter. It was effectively his final at-bat of the regular season. The 20-20 milestone was riding on a single swing. It was the kind of moment when any batter might be tempted to take a full swing and go for the fences.
But Park Jae-hyun did not swing through empty air. As soon as the first pitch from LG left-handed reliever John Kennedy came in, he laid down a perfectly placed surprise bunt toward third without hesitation. He was willing to give up the milestone and do whatever it took to reach base safely. He sprinted to first and was eventually ruled safe.
This remarkable bunt single—a sacrifice of personal glory for the team—immediately set off a huge chain reaction. Kennedy, who never imagined a batter on the verge of a major milestone would bunt and run on the first pitch, began to falter badly.


The table was perfectly set: a runner on first with no outs. The next batter was none other than “superstar” Kim Do-yeong. Kim did not miss Kennedy’s mistake as the pitcher came under pressure, driving a game-winning two-run homer over the center-field wall—his 45th of the season—and sending Gwangju into a frenzy.
In the end, Park Jae-hyun’s one selfless surprise bunt brought about Kim Do-yeong’s game-winning homer and proved the perfect stepping stone, propelling the Kia Tigers to a 4-2 win and third place in the regular-season standings—and straight to the semi-playoffs.
In the past, the KBO League often saw selfish farces in the closing weeks of the season, with players neglecting the contest or getting into heated disputes in pursuit of personal records.
But the Kia Tigers’ second-year outfielder was different. He set aside the glittering distinction of 20 home runs and 20 stolen bases and threw himself into the effort to get his team to the postseason.
Though his personal record will show 19 home runs, the name Park Jae-hyun was etched more powerfully in the hearts of Gwangju’s home fans than any milestone could be. That is the true strength that sustains the powerhouse Tigers.
[email protected] Jeon Sang-il Reporter