Kim Do-yeong punctuates int’l breakout with homer, 4 RBIs in Premier12 finale

South Korea didn’t have much to celebrate at the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier12 in Taipei this month, as it was eliminated in the opening round before playing its final game Monday. However, the breakout performance by its star third baseman Kim Do-yeong certainly qualified as cause for celebration.

Kim put an exclamation mark to his memorable tournament by hitting a home run and driving in four runs in South Korea’s 5-2 win over Australia in the teams’ final Group B game at Taipei Tianmu Baseball Stadium in Taipei.

Kim, 21, was hyped up by the WBSC as one of the players to watch at this tournament. And the All-Star for the Kia Tigers in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) turned out to be just that, swinging the bat with authority and flashing the kind of power that made him the presumptive KBO regular-season MVP in 2024.

Kim first served notice in an 8-4 win over Cuba on Thursday, when he smacked two home runs, including a grand slam, and drove in five runs.

South Korea had a scare during Saturday’s game against the Dominican Republic, when Kim was removed during the sixth inning with left hip discomfort. He appeared to tweak it in an attempt to tag a runner behind his back on a steal attempt.

After a day off on Sunday, Kim was back in the lineup Monday as designated hitter.

And Kim showed no ill effects of his injury. He knocked in the game’s first run with a single in the third inning and alertly took second base when center fielder Aaron Whitefield bobbled the ball.

Kim hit another RBI single in the fourth inning, and he was far from done.

That hit gave South Korea a 3-0 lead but Australia cut it to 3-2 with a run each in the fifth and sixth.

Then in the bottom seventh, Kim put South Korea up by three again with one swing of the bat, as he destroyed an inside fastball from Sam Holland and sent it over the left-field wall for his team-high third home run of the competition.

Kim finished the competition with a .412 batting average and an eye-popping 1.503 on-base plus slugging. He had seven hits and five went for extra bases.

South Korea was eliminated from title contention after Japan and Chinese Taipei each won its game Sunday night to grab the two Super Round spots available in Group B. It made South Korea’s game against Australia meaningless.

But Kim made sure disappointed fans still had something to cheer about at the end with another big day at the plate.

Kim said he wanted to deliver a win for fans who braved the rain and to finish the tournament on a winning note. As great as his individual success was, Kim also said he’s now motivated to accomplish more team success.

“I think this experience has taught me to work even harder for international tournaments in the future, so that’s the positive takeaway for me,” Kim said. “It’s disappointing that we didn’t get the result we wanted as a team. That’s what motivates me to play harder and help the team succeed.”