After big weekend, Pirates’ Kang Jung-ho closer to milestone homer for Asians

SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) — After launching two long balls in a game for the first time in his young Major League Baseball career over the weekend, South Korean rookie Kang Jung-ho of the Pittsburgh Pirates is staring at a milestone homer for Asian-born big leaguers.

He now sits at 12 homers in his first big league season, after going deep twice in Saturday’s game against the San Francisco Giants. Kang, who went 1-for-3 with a walk on Sunday against the Giants, also has 46 RBIs and is slashing .290/.364/.463, with 12 home runs, five steals and 34 extra-base hits.

After being named the National League Rookie of the Month for July thanks to a .379/.443/.621 line in 25 games, Kang has enjoyed a power surge in August, with five homers in 20 games, already two more than in July.

It puts him on course for 16 home runs. Former Seattle Mariners catcher Kenji Johjima holds the mark for most home runs by an Asian-born big league rookie with 18, set in 2006. Former New York Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui had 16 homers in his first season in 2003.

Among infielders, second baseman Tadahito Iguchi set the standards for Asians with 15 homers for the Chicago White Sox in 2005. Choi Hee-seop is the only other South Korean infielder to play in the big leagues, and he had eight homers in 2003 for the Chicago Cubs.

Choo Shin-soo, an outfielder for the Texas Rangers, has three 20-homer seasons under his belt. His career-high is 22 for the Cleveland Indians in 2010, and he has 15 homers so far this year.

Kang Jung-ho of the Pittsburgh Pirates hits a solo shot against the San Francisco Giants at PNC Park in Pittsburgh on Aug. 22, 2015. (AFP-Yonhap)

Given Kang’s track record in the dog days of summer, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that he’s been displaying some power stroke of late.

Last year in South Korea, Kang had 40 homers and 117 RBIs with a .356 average. And 16 of those home runs came in the 38 games across July and August. He drove in 44 runs and batted a robust .422 in that span.

In another sign that he thrives in heat, Kang leads all major league rookies with 23 extra-base hits since July 1.

Kang has feasted on big league fastballs. According to the advanced statistics website baseballsavant.com prior to Sunday’s game, Kang was leading all major league players with at least 30 at-bats against pitches 95 miles per hour or faster with a .513 batting average (20-for-39).

Two-time American League MVP Miguel Cabrera was next at .424 (14-for-33).

Kang, who struggled to find consistent playing time earlier in the season, has taken full advantage after regular shortstop Jordy Mercer went down with a leg injury on July 19. Kang has played 30 of the Pirates’ 31 games since July 20 — mostly at shortstop, with veteran Aramis Ramirez spelling another injured player, Josh Harrison, at third — hitting .330 (37-for-112) with seven homers and 15 RBIs.

The strong second-half numbers have thrust Kang into the NL Rookie of the Year race. Kris Bryant of the Chicago Cubs remains the trendy pick, with his 74 RBIs and an .843 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) leading all NL rookies. Kang is right behind Bryant with an .827 OPS.

Matt Duffy of the Giants has emerged as a dark horse, as he leads NL freshmen with a .308 average and 127 hits. He’s also tops in Baseball-Reference.com’s Wins Above Replacement (WAR) at 4.1, with Kang in second at 3.6.

Joc Pederson of the Los Angeles Dodgers has swung his way out of the Rookie of the Year contention. Though he leads all big league rookies with 23 home runs, his batting average has nosedived from .298 in April to .214 through Sunday. He batted just .169 in July and is sitting at .122 in August, with 48 strikeouts in 44 games.

jeeho@yna.co.kr

via (News Focus) After big weekend, Pirates’ Kang Jung-ho closer to milestone homer for Asians.