Jung-ho Kang

The native form of this personal name is Kang Jung-ho. This article uses the Western name order.
Jung-ho Kang

Kang batting in 2015
Pittsburgh Pirates – No. 27
Third baseman / Shortstop
Born: (1987-04-05) April 5, 1987
Gwangju, South Korea
Bats: Right Throws: Right
Professional debut
KBO: April 8, 2006, for the Hyundai Unicorns
MLB: April 8, 2015, for the Pittsburgh Pirates
KBO statistics
Batting average .298
Hits 916
Home runs 139
Runs batted in 545
MLB statistics
(through 2016 season)
Batting average .273
Hits 202
Home runs 36
Runs batted in 120
Teams
Career highlights and awards

KBO

  • 5× KBO League All-Star (2010–2014)
  • 4× KBO League Golden Glove Award (2010, 2012–2014)
  • KBO Slugging Percentage leader (2014)

MLB
Medal record
Men's baseball
Representing  South Korea
Asian Games
2010 Guangzhou Team
2014 Incheon Team
Jung-ho Kang
Hangul 강정호
Hanja 姜正浩
Revised Romanization Gang Jeongho
McCune–Reischauer Kang Chŏngho
IPA Korean: [kaŋdʑʌŋho]

Jung-ho Kang (Korean: 강정호; born April 5, 1987) is a South Korean infielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball (MLB). He previously played in the KBO League for the Hyundai Unicorns and Nexen Heroes.

Early life

While attending Gwangju Jeil High School, Kang's main position was catcher.[1]

In 2004, Kang was selected for the South Korean national under-18 team as a third baseman and was part of the team that won bronze at the World Junior Baseball Championship.[2]

In July 2005, Kang helped Gwangju Jeil High School win the Golden Lion Flag Championship, winning the Outstanding Pitcher Award and the RBI title.[3]

Professional career

KBO League

Hyundai Unicorns

Kang was drafted by the Hyundai Unicorns in the second round of the 2006 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) First-Year Player Draft.[4] Kang struggled to make an impact in his first two seasons. In his rookie season, he played 10 games and batted .150.[4] He struck out eight times in 21 plate appearances.[5] In 2007, he appeared in 20 games and hit .133.[5]

Nexen Heroes

In 2008, Hyundai sold the Unicorns, who subsequently became defunct and were replaced with a new team, Woori Heroes (renamed the Nexen Heroes in 2009).[6] Kang became the starting shortstop for the Heroes in 2008, appearing in 116 games, batting .271 with 8 home runs and 47 RBI.[4][5]

In 2009, Kang had an impressive offensive season. He finished the season with a .286 batting average, 23 home runs, 81 RBI, a .508 slugging percentage, 136 hits, and 71 runs scored.[4][5] Kang tied Hong Sung-heon of the Lotte Giants for the league lead in doubles (33).[7]

In 2010, Kang had his first season with a .300 batting average.[5] He finished with an average of .301, as well as 12 home runs and 58 RBI.[5] His defensive play earned him his first KBO Gold Glove Award.[8] As a member of the South Korean national baseball team, Kang also won the gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games, where he hit 3 home runs in 13 at-bats.

In 2011, Kang regressed slightly from his two previous seasons, hitting .282 with 9 home runs and 63 RBI.[5]

In 2012, Kang improved, hitting .314 with 25 home runs (2nd in the league), 82 RBI, 77 runs scored, and a career-high 21 stolen bases.[5] He would also win his second Gold Glove Award.[8]

In March 2013, Kang competed in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.[9]

In the 2013 KBO season, Kang hit 22 home runs and had an OPS of .876.[5] He also won his second straight Gold Glove Award, his third overall.[8]

In 2014, Kang had his best season statistically, hitting .356 with 40 home runs and 117 RBI.[5] He led the league in slugging percentage (.739) and OPS (1.198).[10] He also finished second in home runs (40) and OBP (.459), third in RBI (117) and doubles (36), and fifth in runs scored (103).[10] He also won his third straight Gold Glove Award, his fouth overall.[8]

Major League Baseball

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 22, 2014, it was announced that the Pittsburgh Pirates had won the bidding for Kang and would get the opportunity to negotiate a contract for him to move to Major League Baseball.[11] The Pirates' winning bid was later revealed to be $5,002,015 (₩5,457,150,000).[1]

2015 season

On January 16, 2015, Kang signed a four-year, $11 million, contract with the Pirates, with an option for a fifth year.[12][13]

In spring training, Kang competed with Jordy Mercer for the starting shortstop job.[12][13] 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.[14]

On April 4, 2015, Kang recorded his first Major League hit off Kyle Lohse of the Milwaukee Brewers, a flare just past the outstretched glove of shortstop Jean Segura.[15] On April 21, Kang recorded his first RBI against the Chicago Cubs with a bases-clearing RBI double that gave the Pirates a 8-5 lead.[16] On May 4, Kang hit his first home run off St. Louis Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal. The solo home run tied the game, 1-1, in the 9th inning.[17]

On May 9, 2015, during a 7–5 win over the Cardinals, the Pirates became the first MLB team to turn a 4–5–4 triple play. The play occurred when the Cardinals' Yadier Molina lined out to second baseman Neil Walker. Walker threw to Kang at third base to double off 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 Jason Heyward froze between second and third.[18]

On September 17, 2015, during a game against the Chicago Cubs, Kang was covering second base in a double play attempt. Baserunner Chris Coghlan attempted break up the double play by sliding into Kang. Coghlan collided with Kang's left knee, fracturing his leg and tearing his MCL. Kang was placed on the 60-day disabled list and would miss the remainder of the season.[19]

In 126 games in 2015, Kang hit .287 with 15 HRs and 58 RBIs.[5] He finished in third in Rookie of the Year voting.[20]

2016 season

On May 6, 2016, Kang played in his first game since his 2015 injury. He hit two home runs in the game, leading the Pirates to a 4-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.[21][22][23]

Personal life

On June 17, 2016, Chicago police say Kang reportedly met a 23-year old woman through a dating app and they both agreed to meet in person at Westin hotel in Chicago at 10PM while he was in town with the Pirates to play a series against the Chicago Cubs. The woman alleges that they both went to Kang's hotel room and after he offered her a drink, she began to fade in and out of consciousness, while he sexually assaulted her. She says she regained consciousness in a taxi cab. Two days later, the victim went to Northwestern Memorial Hospital and had a rape kit performed but did not want to file a report at the time. On June 29, 2016, she filed a formal complaint with the Chicago Police Department after having been in contact with them over the course of ten days.[24] On September 14, 2016, Chicago Police say they have not been able to contact the victim and are seeking to find her for future questioning regarding the allegations.[25]

On December 2, 2016, it was reported that Kang had been arrested for fleeing the scene of a DUI accident in his native South Korea the night before. He was arrested with a blood alcohol level of 0.084, above Korea's 0.050 limit. He allegedly crashed his vehicle in a guard rail at 2:45 AM Korea standard time, in front of a Seoul subway station. Seoul police have also said they are investigating if Kang asked a friend to falsify a report about who was driving the vehicle during the time of the incident.[26]

References

  1. 1 2 Brink, Bill (February 23, 2015). "Jung Ho Kang begins transition to Pirates, MLB". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  2. ↑ "2004 World Junior Championship". Baseball Reference. n.d. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  3. ↑ Hwan, Soo-zang; Kim, Sung-kyu (July 7, 2005). "Gwangju Jeil High School Takes Home the Golden Lion after 21 Years". The Dong-a Ilbo. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "2014 International FA Profile: SS, Jung-Ho Kang (KBO)". Global Sporting Integration. September 14, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "Jung-Ho Kang". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  6. ↑ "Nexen Heroes". homeplate.kr (Korean Baseball Information, News, and Opinion). Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  7. ↑ "2009 Korean Baseball Organization Batting Leaders". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Jung-ho Kang". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  9. ↑ "2013 World Baseball Classic (Rosters)". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  10. 1 2 "2014 Korean Baseball Organization Batting Leaders". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Pirates win rights to negotiate with South Korean shortstop". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 22, 2014. Retrieved December 22, 2014.
  12. 1 2 "Jung Ho Kang, Pirates finalize deal". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 16, 2015. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  13. 1 2 Singer, Tom (January 16, 2015). "Bucs, Kang make it official with 4-year deal". MLB.com. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  14. ↑ Singer, Tom (March 3, 2015). "Jung-ho Kang goes deep in first spring game". MLB.com. Retrieved March 5, 2015.
  15. ↑ Singer, Tom (April 12, 2015). "Kang collects first big league hit after being robbed twice". MLB.com. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  16. ↑ Singer, Tom (April 22, 2015). "Kang's first extra-base hit, RBIs could boost confidence". MLB.com. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  17. ↑ Berg, Ted (May 4, 2015). "Watch Pirates infielder Jung Ho Kang hit his first MLB home run". USA Today. Retrieved May 11, 2016.
  18. ↑ Abrotsky, Justin L.; Stone, Avery (May 9, 2015). "Pittsburgh Pirates pull off first 4–5–4 triple play in MLB history against Cardinals". USA Today. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Jung Ho Kang of Pittsburgh Pirates placed on 60-day DL". Retrieved 2015-09-30.
  20. ↑ "2015 Rookie of the Year Award voting". Baseball Reference. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  21. ↑ Schoenfield, David. "What a return! Pirates' Jung Ho Kang hammers two home runs". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2016-05-07.
  22. ↑ Magliocchetti, Geoff (May 7, 2016). "WATCH: Korean announcers go nuts over Jung Ho Kang's return". Sportsgrid.com. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
  23. ↑ "Jung Ho Kang homers twice in return from knee injury, Bucs beat Cards". Foxsports.com. May 7, 2016. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
  24. ↑ Jonathan Silver (July 26, 2016). "Police: Alleged assault victim of Pirate's Kang initially did not cooperate". Chicago tribune.com. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  25. ↑ WGN web desk (September 14, 2016). "Chicago Police say they can't find Pirate's Player's sexual assault victims". wgntv.com. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
  26. ↑ Jeremy Krasnick (December 2, 2016L). "Pirates' 3B Jung Ho Kang faces DUI related charges in Korea". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 2, 2016.

External links

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