Sports Yonhap News Sports · 4h ago

KBO Milestone Night: Choi Won-jun and Victor Reyes Hit 200-Hit Milestone as League Sets Attendance Record

Key Points

kt wiz's Choi Won-jun and Lotte Giants' Victor Reyes both surpassed 200 hits on the same night, putting them within striking distance of the all-time single-season hit record.
KIA's Kim Do-young and LG's Austin Dean traded home runs to fuel a fierce home run title race, while veteran Park Hae-min recorded his 500th career stolen base.
Sold-out stadiums in Seoul and Gwangju pushed the KBO League's single-season sellout tally to a historic 332 games, highlighting the unprecedented boom in Korean baseball fandom.

Summary The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) League reached a fever pitch as the regular season neared its climax, delivering an unforgettable night of historic milestones and high-drama pennant races. At the center of the excitement were kt wiz outfielder Choi Won-jun and Lotte Giants foreign hitter Victor Reyes, who both eclipsed the rare 200-hit milestone on the very same day to finish tied at 201 hits apiece. Reaching 200 hits in a single KBO season is one of the most grueling statistical feats in professional baseball, given the league's 144-game regular-season schedule. Choi became only the third player in league history to cross the 200-hit threshold, and the first native Korean batter to do so since Seo Geon-chang achieved 201 hits in 2014. Meanwhile, Reyes etched his name in the record books by becoming the first player in KBO history to log multiple 200-hit seasons, having set the single-season all-time record of 202 hits in 2024. With both players sitting at 201 hits, the race to claim the single-season crown has electrified baseball fans across South Korea. The excitement wasn't limited to base hits. Over in Gwangju, KIA Tigers superstar Kim Do-young crushed his 43rd home run of the campaign with a go-ahead three-run blast, maintaining his narrow lead in the home run race over LG Twins slugger Austin Dean, who belted his 41st earlier in the evening. In the same contest, LG's veteran center fielder Park Hae-min became only the fourth player in KBO history to notch 500 career stolen bases, while securing his 40th steal of the year to complete his third straight 40-steal season. This record-setting evening unfolded before completely packed houses at Seoul's Jamsil Baseball Stadium and Gwangju-Kia Champions Field. The simultaneous sellouts pushed the league's total sold-out games for the season to 332, establishing a brand-new all-time record for Korean professional baseball. Driven by passionate fan bases, viral stadium culture, and intense end-of-season playoff chases, the KBO continues to see unprecedented popularity, cementing baseball's status as South Korea's premier spectator sport.