Kang Jung-ho

Kang Jung-Ho (Hangul: 강정호, Hanja: 姜正浩) (born April 5, 1987 in Gwangju) is a South Korean shortstop for the Nexen Heroes in the Korea Professional Baseball. He bats and throws right-handed.

Amateur career

While attending Gwangju Jaeil High School, Kang's main position was catcher. However, he was known for his ability to play a variety of positions, showing his versatility by playing all nine positions during all three years of high school.

In 2004 Kang was selected for the South Korean national under-18 team as a third baseman and led his team to win bronze at the World Junior Baseball Championship held in Taiwan.

In July 2005 Kang helped Gwangju Jaeil High School win the Golden Lion Flag Championship as an all-around player, winning the Best Pitcher Award and the RBI title. In September 2005, he was called up to the South Korean national under-18 team again as a catcher and participated in the Asian Junior Baseball Championship where he batted fourth in the lineup and finished with a .375 batting average.

Notable international careers

Year	Venue|	Competition	Team	Individual Note
2004	Chinese Taipei	World Junior Baseball Championship
2005	South Korea	Asian Junior Baseball Championship		.375 BA (6-for-16), 1 R

Professional career

Kang was drafted by the Hyundai Unicorns with the eighth pick in the second round of the 2006 KBO Draft. The Unicorns intended to use him as a fixture at shortstop which had been left empty since 2005 when Park Jin-Man moved to the Samsung Lions. However, Kang struggle to make an impact as a super rookie, batting .150 (3-for-20) and striking out eight times in 20 at-bats. In 2007 he appeared in only 20 first-league games with a .133 batting average, spending the majority of the season in the KBO's reserve league.

In 2008, however, after compiling impressive reserve league numbers, Kang became the team's starting shortstop. He appeared in 116 games for the Heroes in 2008, batting a respectable .271 with 8 home runs and 47 RBI in 362 at-bats.

In 2009, Kang exploded offensively, finishing the season hitting 23 home runs (11th in the league), driving in 81 runs (11th in the league) and slugging .508 (13th in the league) with a .286 batting average, 136 hits and 71 runs. Also, he tied Giants hitter Hong Sung-Heon for most doubles (33).

Notable international careers

Year	Venue|	Competition	Team	Individual Note
2010	China	Asian Games		.515 BA (8-for-13), 3 HR, 8 RBI, 5 R

External links

• Profile and stats on the KBO official site