By Yoon Chul
LG Twins young gun Lee Dae-hyung and veteran Cho In-sung have reached new heights in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO).
As Lee, dubbed “Supersonic,” added a steal to claim more than 50 for four straight years and Cho became the first catcher to record over 100 RBIs in a season against the Lotte Giants in an 8-7 win.
Lee reached first base on a walk and then stole second in the third inning. Cho’s hit landed over the left fence for an 8-2 lead in the seventh, for his hundredth RBIs.
The 35-year-old’s record may not seem that great, but given his position it is quite an achievement.
The catcher is the most important and exhausting position on the diamond. The leader on the field often suffers injuries, which is the reason why Cho’s new record is meaningful.
Before this season, one of the best Korean catchers, Park Kyung-wan of the SK Wyverns recorded the most RBIs with 95 hitting 40 home runs in 2000 for the Hyundai Unicorns — a predecessor of the Nexen Heroes.
The-13-year-old pro baseballer is aiming for another record.
While Cho has a .324 batting average, 26 dingers and 100 RBI, he is aiming to hit more than 30 homers, 100 RBIs with an average over .300.
As of Tuesday, the Twins have 15 games left and the toughest category to improve on will be home runs.
Cho is currently hitting a homer in every 4.5 games, which means mathematically he is likely to hit 29 or 30 by the end of season.
Lee’s record is also huge.
Lee, made his debut in the KBO in 2003, stole the most bases with 53 in 2007 and has retained his title for the past three years.
Though Lee often struggles to reach first base he is just ahead of Kim Joo-chan of the Giants who has 49 steals this year.
If he beats out Kim for the title, it will be the first time to stand atop in the most steals for four years in a row, since Jung Soo-keun managed it from 1998 to 2001 for the Doosan Bears.
Last season he stole 64 bases, and he broke 60 for the first time in 11 years in the league.
Lee Jong-bum of the Kia Tigers stole 84 bases — the most in a season in the KBO — in 1994.
Former Heroes hitter Jun Jun-ho stole the most career bases with 550 ahead of Lee Jong-bum and Jung who recorded 507 and 474, respectively.
Lee Dae-hyung currently has 291.
“Playing four straight years without injury is more meaningful than the record itself,” Lee said.