| Kwang-hyun Kim | |
|---|---|
 Kim with TeamSouth Korea at the2019 WBSC Premier 12 | |
| SSG Landers – No. 29 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1988-07-22)July 22, 1988 (age 36) Seoul,South Korea | |
Bats: Left Throws: Left | |
| Professional debut | |
| KBO: April 10, 2007, for the SK Wyverns | |
| MLB: July 25, 2020, for the St. Louis Cardinals | |
| KBO statistics (through 2024 season) | |
| Win–loss record | 170-98 |
| Earned run average | 3.33 |
| Strikeouts | 1,882 |
| MLB statistics (through 2021 season) | |
| Win-loss record | 10–7 |
| Earned run average | 2.97 |
| Strikeouts | 104 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Kwang-hyun Kim | |
| Hangul | 김광현 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Gim Gwanghyeon |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kim Kwanghyŏn |
Kwang-hyun Kim (Korean: 김광현; born July 22, 1988) is a South Korean professionalbaseballpitcher for theSSG Landers of theKBO League. He has also played inMajor League Baseball (MLB) for theSt. Louis Cardinals.
Kim attended Ansan Technical High School inAnsan,Gyeonggi Province,South Korea. In 2004, he led his team to the first national championship ever, pitching four-consecutive complete game victories in the tournament with a 0.96 ERA, and was named MVP.
Signed by theSK Wyverns, Kim made his professional debut on April 10, 2007. He was in the Wyverns' starting pitching rotation for most of the2007 KBO League season. Although his performance was inconsistent, he showed signs of promise as a rookie, including pitching a one-hit victory in 71⁄3 innings over theDoosan Bears, facing MVPDaniel Rios in the2007 Korean Series.[citation needed]
In the 2008 season, Kim had a career year. He went 16–4 with a 2.39 ERA and 150 strikeouts in 162 innings pitched. Kim ended the season as the KBO League leader for both wins and strikeouts.[1]
On August 2, 2009, Kim washit with a batted ball hit byHyun-soo Kim when he had one of the worst pitching performances in hisKBO League career, allowing 4 runs in just 2 innings against theDoosan Bears. He suffered afracture on the back of hishand and he was out for theseason as the result. However, he won the 2009ERA title, pitching 138.1 innings which enabled him enough to qualify for the ERA title.[1]
On November 4, 2014, Kim wasposted toMLB. TheSan Diego Padres won the bidding with a bid of $2 million.[2] However, contract negotiations ended without an agreement and Kim returned to the SK Wyverns.[3]
For the 2019 season, Kim went 17–6 with a 2.51 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP over 190.1 innings.[4]
On December 17, 2019, Kim signed a two-year contract worth $11 million (combined option $3 million) with theSt. Louis Cardinals.[5] The SK Wyverns received a $1.6 millionposting fee.[6] When the start of the2020 Major League Baseball season wasdelayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, Kim considered returning to Korea to be with his family. He was convinced, however, by Cardinals teammateAdam Wainwright to stay in the United States with the Cardinals.[7]
On July 24, 2020, Kim made his MLB debut against thePittsburgh Pirates, allowing 1 earned run over 1 inning of work.[8] On August 22, he earned his 1st MLB win.[9] Kim finished his first MLB season with a 3–0 record, 24 strikeouts and a 1.62 ERA.
In 2021, Kim appeared in 27 games (21 starts) and posted a 7–7 record with a 3.46 ERA, 80 strikeouts and 39 walks in106+2⁄3 innings. He became a free agent following the season.
On March 7, 2022, Kim signed a 4-year, $12.3M contract with theSSG Landers, returning to the KBO.[10] His contract was the most valuable in the history of the league.[11]
On June 1, 2023, South Korea baseball began an investigation of Kim and two otherWBC pitchers (Lee Yong-chan and Jeong Cheol-won) for violating behavioral codes. The violation was a result of the three pitchersboozing during two nights of the tournament, and Kim was demoted to the minor leagues by SSG as a result of the investigation.[12]
In 2005, Kim was selected for the South Korea national junior team that was runner-up at the 6th Asian Junior Baseball Championship inSeoul,South Korea. He earned two wins againstChinese Taipei, and pitched a five-inningno-hitter againstJapan.
In 2006, Kim competed for the South Korea national junior team in the 22ndWorld Junior Baseball Championship inHavana,Cuba. He led his team to the gold medal, earning four of South Korea's six wins. Kim tossed a five-hitcomplete gameshutout to lead South Korea to a 1–0 victory overChinese Taipei in the quarterfinals, and pitched two wins overCanada in the semifinals andUSA in the final. He posted a solid 0.87 ERA and 22 strikeouts throughout the tournament, and was named the Most Valuable Player.
In January 2008, Kim was selected for theSouth Korea national baseball team and participated in theBeijing Olympic Qualification Final Tournament held from March 7 through March 14, 2008 inTaichung,Taiwan. There he helped his team win a spot in theBeijing Summer Olympics by starting two times and going 2–0 with a 1.64 ERA. At the2008 Olympic Games, Kim contributed to his team's victories as results of 1–0 with a 1.26 ERA and 12 strike outs in 3 games. In the semifinal game againstJapan, he gave up one earned run and six hits in eight innings for Korea to get the victory. Kim did not allow a runner past first base after the 3rd inning, when Japan scored on a walk, a sacrifice and a single byNorichika Aoki.
In March 2009, Kim competed for theSouth Korea national baseball team in the2009 World Baseball Classic, where they finished runner-up. He started againstJapan in South Korea's first game inTokyo,Japan, but suffered one of his worst games, giving up eight runs in just 1.1 innings of a 14–2 loss to Japan. Kim couldn't get over the disastrous start in Tokyo, struggling in the exhibition games againstMLB teams before the start ofRound 2. Command of his pitches became a trouble spot, and Team Korea managerKim In-sik pitched him in relief until the end of the competition.
| Year | Venue | Competition | Team | Individual Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 |  South Korea | Asian Junior Baseball Championship |  | 2–2, 1.04 ERA (4 G, 11.2 IP, 3 ER, 12 K) |
| 2006 |  Cuba | World Junior Baseball Championship |  | 4–0, 0.87 ERA (5 G, 20.2 IP, 2 ER, 22 K) Most Valuable Player |
| 2008 |  Chinese Taipei | Final Olympic Qualification Tournament | | 2–0, 1.64 ERA (2 G, 11.0 IP, 2 ER) |
| 2008 |  China | Olympic Games | | 1–0, 1.26 ERA (3 G, 14.1 IP, 2 ER) |
| 2009 |  United States | World Baseball Classic | | 0–1, 21.60 ERA (4 G, 3.1 IP, 8 ER) |
| 2014 | South Korea | 2014 Asian Games | | 0–0, 3.52 ERA (2 G, 7.2 IP, 3 ER) |
| 2015 |  Japan | WBSC Premier12 | | 0–1, 5.14 ERA (2 G, 7.0 IP, 4 ER, 8 K) |
| 2019 | Japan | WBSC Premier12 | | 1–1, 2.89 ERA (2 G, 9.1 IP, 3 ER, 10 K) |
With an overhand delivery, Kim pitches a fastball averaging 91–92 mph[13] (tops out at 96 mph[14]) as a starter. His slider is considered above-average[15] and usually sits around 85 mph. He also has a curveball and a forkball.[16] When Kim was young, he struggled with his control and command. However, in 2018, he had improved his control and also his command.[17]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)