Na Sung-bum (KIA Tigers) turned on the green light to play in the opening game for the first time in three years.

Na Sung-bum started as the fourth right fielder in an exhibition game against the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on the 13th and recorded two hits and one RBI in three at-bats.메이저놀이터

As a result, Na Sung-bum, who had hits in three consecutive games, hit a batting average of 0.400 (4 hits in 10 at-bats) with a three-run OPS of 0.955 in 11 exhibition games.

On the day, Na had a hit to the right off Doosan starter Kwak Bin with two outs and a runner on the first base in the top of the first inning. He made the first and third bases occupied, but Wisdom failed to score a run as he struck out three pitches.

In his second at-bat, he was responsible for his team's first run. When the score was tying 0-0 with runners on the first and second bases with one out in the top of the third inning, he hit Kwak Bin's sprained ball, leading to a timely hit. He completed multi-hits at his second at-bat. Na Sung-bum's timely hit gave Kia a 1-0 lead.

At the third batter's box with two outs in the top of the fifth inning, he hit the second pitch from the changed pitcher Kim Ho-joon, but was out after hitting a fly ball to the center field. Na was replaced by Park Jung-woo ahead of defense in the bottom of the fifth inning.

He is making every effort to play in the regular season opener against the NC Dinos on the 22nd.

Na Sung-bum did not play in the opening game until last year after the 2022 season. He injured his calf in 2023 and hamstring last year.

That is why I was so jealous this year. The training method was also slightly different. After the U.S. camp, I did not play in the second training camp in Okinawa, Japan at all. Instead, I focused on running training. Na Sung-bum requested it, and coach Lee Bum-ho readily accepted the request.

After focusing on his training, Na took part in exhibition games. On Saturday, his first game, he failed to garner a hit in the game against Lotte. He reported a hit in the game on Sunday, and hit his first long hit (double) in an exhibition game against NC Dinosaurs in Changwon on Sunday. In the game against Doosan, he garnered multi hits for the first time to boost his batting performance.

KIA Tigers Na Sung-beom/Jamsil= Reporter Shim Hye-jin

"I think I can see the ball better than I thought. It's in good condition. I'm playing every day, and I want the season to open soon," said Na Sung-bum, who met after the game.

He cited training as the key to his good batting performance. "In the past, I felt comfortable psychologically after playing many games, but now that I have more experience, I don't think I need to do that. I needed to take a lot of training before the season, so I told the coach a few years ago that I would play exhibition games first, not camp. I focused more on training during the camp," he said.

After taking a two-week break after the end of the season, Na began training in mid-November. He then took more weight of running and stretching.

"I ran a lot in the camp as well. As a result, I think I lost weight and my body became lighter. I think I have more strengths in many ways. After talking to my training coach, I thought it would be better to take a lot of running, so I did it," Na explained.

Na Sung-bum was placed in the fourth batting order at exhibition games. "Rather than being the fourth batter, I am the fourth batter," he said with a smile. "I think we need to prepare accordingly because the coach trusts me and releases me. No matter what kind of batting order I go to, it is my role to show myself."

Kia aims to win its second consecutive title this year. The preparation process of its players is also good. "I haven't told the players, but both pitchers and fielders have prepared well," Na said. "I didn't show good performance in the beginning, but I think I am getting better as I keep playing. If this continues, I think I will be able to present good performance to my fans this season as well."