Jung-ho Kang

Medal record
Men's baseball
Representing  South Korea
Asian Games
	2010 Guangzhou	Team
	2014 Incheon	Team

Jung-ho Kang (Korean: 강정호; born April 5, 1987) is a South Korean third baseman and shortstop for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball. He previously played in the KBO League for the Hyundai Unicorns and Nexen Heroes. He bats and throws right-handed. He stands 6'0" and weighs 215 lbs.

Early life

While attending Gwangju Jeil 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 Jeil High School win the Golden Lion Flag Championship as an all-around player, winning the Outstanding Pitcher Award and the RBI title.^[1] 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.

Professional career

KBO League

Hyundai Unicorns

Kang was drafted by the Hyundai Unicorns with the eighth pick in the second round of the 2006 Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) First-Year Player 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 struggled to make an impact as a rookie, batting .150 (3-for-20) and striking out eight times in 20 at-bats. In 2007 he appeared in only 20 games with a .133 batting average, spending the majority of the season in the KBO Futures League.

Nexen Heroes

In 2008, however, after compiling impressive reserve league numbers, Kang became the team's starting shortstop. He appeared in 116 games for the Nexen 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, batting average .286, driving in 81 runs and .508 slugging percentage, 136 hits and 71 runs. Also, he tied Giants hitter Hong Sung-heon for most doubles (33).

In 2010, Kang had his first .300 season, batting .301 with 12 home runs and 58 RBI despite wrist injuries which hampered him all season. Following the 2010 season, Kang was presented with his first KBO Golden Glove Award and won the gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games as a member of the South Korean national baseball team where he hit three home runs in 13 at-bats.

On September 11, 2011, Kang appeared as a catcher in the final inning of a baseball game against the Lotte Giants and contributed to closing the game without surrendering a run.

In 2012, Kang hit .314/.413/.560 with 25 home runs (2nd in the league), 82 RBI, and 77 runs scored, plus a career-high 21 stolen bases.

In March 2013, Kang competed in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. In the final Group B preliminary game against Chinese Taipei, he provided the game-winning two-run home run off former Major League All-Star Kuo Hong-Chih in a 3–2 victory. In the 2013 KBO season, Kang hit 22 home runs (5th in the league), and OPS .876 (8th in the league)

In 2014, Kang had a breakout season, hitting .356 with 40 home runs (runner-up in the league) and 117 RBI (third). He also led the league in slugging percentage (.739) and OPS (1.198), beating out Park Byung-ho (.686/1.119) and Eric Thames (.688/1.110).

Major League Baseball

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 22, it was announced that the Pittsburgh Pirates won the bidding for Kang and would get the opportunity to negotiate a contract for him to move to Major League Baseball.^[2]

On January 16, 2015, Kang signed a four-year, $11 million, contract with the Pirates with an option for a fifth year. Kang will compete for the starting shortstop job in Spring Training.^[3][4] In his first Spring Training game of the 2015 season, Kang hit a solo home run in the third inning helping the Pirates to a 6–0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.^[5] Although Kang began spring training with a homerun, his spring training statistics have lowered to .130 after going 0 for 3 in a 4–2 win against Minnesota.^[6] Jung-ho Kang recorded his first MLB hit off of Kyle Lohse of the Milwaukee Brewers on April 4, 2015 at approx. 3:52 PM EST, a flare base hit just pass the outstretched glove of SS Jean Segura. Kang recorded his first RBI April 21 at home against the Chicago Cubs. He hit a bases-clearing RBI double to right field in the seventh inning. On May 9, 2015, the Pirates became the first MLB team to turn a 4–5–4 triple play during a 7–5 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. The play occurred when the Cardinals' Yadier Molina lined out to Pittsburgh second baseman Neil Walker. Walker then threw to Kang at third base to double off the Cardinals' Jhonny Peralta for the second out. Kang then threw the ball back to Walker, who was standing on second base for the final out after St. Louis’ Jason Heyward froze between second and third.^[7]

On September 17, 2015, Kang was covering 2nd base in a double play attempt while facing the Chicago Cubs at PNC Park. Chris Coghlan, the left fielder for the Cubs, was sliding into second base to try and break up the double play in progress by sliding into Kang, near Kang’s left knee breaking his leg and tearing his MCL on the play. Kang was placed on the 60-Day Disabled List and is expected to return in the 2016 season.^[8]

Notable international tournaments

Year	Location	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
2010	China	Asian Games		.615 BA (8-for-13), 3 HR, 8 RBI
2013	Taiwan	World Baseball Classic	9th	.222 BA (2-for-9), 1 HR, 2 RBI
2014	South Korea	Asian Games		.454 BA (5-for-11), 2 HR, 7 RBI

References

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Career statistics and player information from Korea Baseball Organization