The first shortstop and second baseman in the KBO League to win Golden Gloves (GG) at the same time. This is the goal Kim Sun-bin (34, KIA Tigers) set out around this time last year.
Kim Sun-bin, who received GG in the shortstop category in the 2017 season, switched to second baseman in the 2020 season. In the 2019 season, Park Chan-ho, who was recognized for his defensive ability as the starting third baseman, moved to shortstop 안전놀이터, and Kim Seon-bin took over the second baseman, which became vacant when Ahn Chi-hong moved to the Lotte Giants.
In the 2021 second baseman GG vote, Kim Sun-bin received 85 votes, the second most after Jeong Eun-won (Hanwha Eagles, 121 votes). Until 2021, no player has won both shortstop and second baseman GG.
Kim Sun-bin’s challenge to be the first was blocked by Kim Hye-seong (Kiwoom Heroes). Kim Hye-seong, who was the shortstop award winner in 2021, even received second baseman GG in 2022. Kim Sun-bin played the most innings for a second baseman in the 2022 season (1134 and 1/3), and left a decent record at bat (0.287 batting average, 3 homers, 61 RBIs), but both offense and defense records were slightly behind Kim Hye-seong.
Although the challenge for the record failed, Kim Sun-bin is likely to spend 2023 more ambitiously.
First of all, your team wants to win. KIA, which ranked 5th in the 2022 regular season and advanced to the postseason (PS) after 4 years, raised its goal this year to win.
Kim Sun-bin, who has been in charge of the team for two consecutive years, is also very motivated. He said, “Last year, I couldn’t show the KIA fans playing PS for a long time because I was eliminated from the wild card match. I will work with them to lead the team.”