SSG Landers star Choi Jeong has never been one to toot his own horn when it comes to his achievements in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). The 37-year-old third baseman is modest and unassuming by nature.
On Wednesday, though, Choi accomplished something that he can brag about without feeling embarrassed: he became the all-time home run king in KBO history.
Choi smacked a solo home run off Lotte Giants starter Lee In-bok in the top of the fifth inning at Sajik Baseball Stadium in the southeastern city of Busan. It gave Choi 468 home runs, putting him past former Samsung Lions slugger Lee Seung-yuop on the career home run list.
“This is such a tremendous honor. It still hasn’t hit me yet I’ve set this record,” Choi told reporters after the Landers rallied for a 12-7 victory. “I never even thought about this record when I started out. I am proud of myself.”
Before the start of the season, Choi had said he wanted to get the record out of the way as quickly as possible, so that he could be out of the li
melight and just focus on the rest of the season. As he neared Lee’s mark this month, Choi repeated that tune.
With the record finally his after his 10th homer of 2024, Choi said he was both happy and relieved.
“I knew I needed 10 homers, and I was worried that the pressure would keep building up if that 10th home run didn’t come soon enough,” Choi said. “I feel fortunate that it came so much earlier than I’d expected. I will now be able to shift the focus back on the team and the season.”
Choi admitted he had been distracted for a while as he closed in on the record. The KBO began using a specially marked ball for every Choi at-bat as he closed in on Lee’s record, so that the home run record could be properly authenticated after it was caught by a fan. That arrangement made Choi feel uncomfortable.
“They changed the ball every time I came to the plate, and I felt sorry toward opposing pitchers because they had to throw the new ball just for me,” Choi said. “So for one reason or another, I had trouble con
centrating at times. I am just glad I got the job done tonight.”
Choi’s home run ball traveled 110 meters to left field, but the player said he wasn’t sure it would leave the yard when it left his bat.
“This stadium has high fences, and I ran hard to first base in case the ball bounced off the wall,” Choi said. “As I rounded the bases, I felt a little embarrassed. It would have been nice to have hit it at home in Incheon (just west of Seoul), but I am just glad I got this out of the way.”
One other regret Choi had at the moment was that the home run came with his team still trailing. Choi’s homer cut the deficit to 7-5, and cleanup Han Yoo-seom followed Choi with his own solo homer to make it 7-6. The Landers came back to win by five runs, but Choi wasn’t sure if his team could pull off the comeback after he hit his homer.
“I was hoping I wouldn’t hit it with the team down in the game, because I figured I would really hate that kind of situation,” Choi said. “I didn’t have good swings in earlier at-bats,
and then that home run seemed to come out of nowhere. I am just glad we rallied to win the game.”
Choi suffered an ill-timed injury last Wednesday, a day after tying Lee’s mark, when he took an errant pitch to his left side. It was Choi’s 330th hit-by-pitch, an all-time KBO record by a mile.
The initial diagnosis was a broken rib, which would have sidelined Choi for a few weeks. But the following day, the Landers said Choi had only sustained a bruise. He ended up missing just four games. He was in the lineup for Tuesday’s game, which was called off after four innings due to rain.
“Once I found out I only had a bruise, I thought I’d be back pretty fast. And I wanted to get my feel back while playing games,” Choi said. “I thought I could get my rhythm back within three or four days, unless I missed an extended period of time.”
Now in his 20th season, Choi took a moment to reflect on his journey so far and called himself “a lucky guy.”
“I want to thank my parents for giving me these abilities,” Choi said. ”
I also feel lucky because I’ve been hit by so many pitches and yet I’ve never suffered a serious injury that forced me to miss a season. Some players suffer broken bones when they get drilled by pitches, but I’ve been able to stay on the field the whole time. I really feel very fortunate.”
Hardly one to chase numbers, Choi let on that he wants to go for 500 home runs.
Lee Seung-yuop once said Choi should keep playing into his 40s and go for 600 home runs. Choi said he doesn’t think he could get to 600, but 500 is doable.
“I want to change my mindset a little bit and set a long-term goal,” Choi said. “I want 500 home runs.”
By hitting his 10th homer of this season, Choi extended his own record of reaching double figures in homers to 19 consecutive seasons. Choi said it’s the one record of his that he doesn’t want to see broken because it represents his consistency.
“Ever since I was young, my goal was always to be a consistent player,” Choi said. “I absolutely love the fact that I’ve been extending my own
record. My only goal for each season is to get into double figures in home runs. I am really happy to get to this point, and I feel like I can relax more at the plate the rest of this season. Every home run after this will be a bonus.”
Choi has said he doesn’t go up to the plate trying to hit home runs and imparted the same message to future sluggers looking up to him.
“If you just think about hitting home runs, you will most likely lose your battle against the pitcher,” Choi said. “You must have good fundamentals in place first. And then once you get to the pro ranks, then you can start upgrading yourself.”
Source: Yonhap News Agency