Taek-yeon Kim

From BR Bullpen

Taek-yeon Kim (김택연)

  • Bats Right, Throws Right
  • Height 5' 11", Weight 194 lb.

BR register page

Biographical Information[edit]

Taek-yeon Kim has pitched in the KBO and for the South Korea national baseball team.

Kim represented South Korea in the 2023 U-18 Baseball World Cup. He was 2-0 with a 0.88 ERA and 29 K in 16 IP, beating Puerto Rico then topping the US and Cooper Williams in the Bronze Medal Game. He tied for 3rd in the Cup in wins and easily led in K (the runners-up had barely half as many with 15). He was named the event's All-Star relief pitcher. The Doosan Bears selected him in the first round of the 2024 KBO draft, and he was named their closer as a rookie. Kim completed an immaculate inning on July 10, and he was the first rookie to have this accomplishment. Kim became the youngest pitcher to get 10 saves, reaching the mark on July 24, and he ended up having 19 saves with a 2.08 ERA in 60 games in 2024. He was 8th in saves, between Seung-won Moon and Yong-chan Lee. He got 93 of 101 votes for the KBO Rookie of the Year.

He then made it onto Korea's roster for the 2024 Premier 12. His debut for the senior national team was a rocky one. Relieving Young-ha Lee in the 8th with a 8-1 lead over Cuba, he allowed a single to Yadir Drake and back-to-back homers to Yoelkis Guibert and Rafael Viñales then was yanked in favor of Hai-young Jung. His other two outings were sharper. Relieving Seo-hyeon Kim to close out a 6-3 loss to Japan, he retired Kaito Kozono and Ryosuke Tatsumi. Versus Australia, he took over Young-ha Lee with men on the corners, one out in the 6th and a 3-1 lead. He got Alex Hall then Liam Spence singled in a run but he retired Ulrich Bojarski to maintain the lead. Hyeong-jun So took over. He did have South Korea's highest ERA in the tourney, 2.25 higher than Do-gyu Kwak.

Kim's repertoire included a fastball (peak 96.4 mph) and forkball.

Sources[edit]

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