Lions catcher Kang Min-ho playing in Korean Series through injury: 'I am pouring my soul into it'

By Yoo Jee-ho

DAEGU, Nov. 6 (Yonhap) -- In pursuit of his first championship ring in his 23-year career, Samsung Lions catcher Kang Min-ho said Friday he is playing in the Korean Series through an oblique injury.

He has been clearly hampered by the pain on his left side, unable to put much behind his swings, but the 41-year-old said he is doing "whatever I can to help the team."

"I am doing what I can to keep getting into games," Kang said after his batting practice before Game 3 of the series against the KT Wiz at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, some 230 kilometers southeast of Seoul. The best-of-seven series is tied at one game apiece.

"I am dealing with a lot of pain when I am swinging the bat but I will still try to do my best," Kang added. "I also want to help out on the defensive side and keep the other team from scoring."

He was guarded about revealing the extent of his injury, saying he had torn a muscle on his left side but adding, "It is not something I want to go around and tell people about."

Kang has gone 0-for-4 with a strikeout in the first two games of the series so far. He has been seen grabbing his left side after taking a swing and fouling off pitches.

"Obviously, when we are trailing and my turn comes up with a runner on base, then it is only the right thing to do to replace me with a pinch hitter," Kang said. "But as long as I am in the game, I want to give it my best effort."

Kang made his Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) debut in 2004 with the Lotte Giants and has been with the Lions since 2018. He did not play in his first Korean Series until 2024, when the Lions lost to the Kia Tigers in five games. He is back on the big stage two years later, and Kang said he was not about to let his injury get in the way.

"I am pouring my soul into it," Kang said. "I am playing with so much desperation."

Kang said his teammates are all battling with a sense of urgency and they were particularly buoyed by their 3-2 victory in 12 innings in Game 2 on Wednesday in the Wiz's home of Suwon, just out of Seoul.

"The ride back to Daegu was a lot of fun," Kang said with a smile. "Honestly, if we had lost that game, we would have been in a really tough spot. But now we are all tied and we will do everything in our power to win tonight's game."

The backstop gave kudos to his pitchers for their effort, singling out starter-turned-reliever Won Tae-in for embracing his role change in the postseason.

"It is not just the pitchers. Everyone is really locked in," Kang said. "I feel like we have truly become a team in every sense of the word."

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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