Hong Sung-heon (

Hangul The Korean alphabet, known as Hangul, . Hangul may also be written as following South Korea's standard Romanization. ( ) in South Korea and Chosŏn'gŭl in North Korea, is the modern official writing system for the Korean language. The let ...

: 홍성흔, born October 21st, 1976 in

Hoengseong County Hoengseong County is a county in Gangwon Province, South Korea. The roots of ''Codonopsis lanceolata'' ( ko, deodeok, script=Latn), a bonnet bellflower species, play an important role in local agriculture. The Korean Minjok Leadership Academy, a ...

, Gangwon-do, South Korea) is a former South Korean

designated hitter The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by th ...

. He batted and threw right-handed. Hong was a

catcher Catcher is a Baseball positions, position in baseball and softball. When a Batter (baseball), batter takes their at bat, turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home plate, home) Umpire (baseball), umpire, and recei ...

, and had been regularly called up to the

South Korea national baseball team The South Korean national baseball team ( ko, 대한민국 야구 국가대표팀) is the national baseball team of South Korea. It won the Baseball World Cup in 1982, and participated in the Summer Olympic Games of 1984, 1988, 1996, and 2000. At ...

as a starting catcher until he was converted to a designated hitter in 2007.

Amateur career

In June 1998, as a senior at

Kyung Hee University Kyung Hee University (abbreviated to KHU) (Hangul: 경희대학교; Hanja: 慶熙大學校) is a private research university in South Korea with campuses in Seoul and Suwon. Founded in 1949, it is widely regarded as one of the best universities i ...

, Hong got his first call-up to the

for the 4-Nation Friendly Baseball Championship in

Kobe Kobe ( , ; officially , ) is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture Japan. With a population around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Tokyo and Yokohama. It is located in Kansai region, whic ...

, Japan. In July 1998, Hong participated in the

1998 Baseball World Cup The 1998 Baseball World Cup (BWC) was the 33rd international Men's amateur baseball tournament. The tournament was sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation, which titled it the Amateur World Series from the 1938 tournament through the ...

. South Korea eventually claimed the silver medal two times in a row, and as a starting catcher he led the team attack alongside

cleanup hitter In baseball, a cleanup hitter is the fourth hitter in the batting order. The cleanup hitter is traditionally the team's most powerful hitter. His job is to "clean up the bases", i.e., drive in base runners. Theory The thinking behind the us ...

Choi Hee-seop and

Park Han-yi Park Han-yi (Hangul: 박한이, Hanja: 朴漢伊) (born January 28, 1979 in Busan, South Korea) is a South Korean former professional baseball outfielder He played for the Samsung Lions of the KBO League. Amateur career In July , as a freshman ...

. In November 1998, Hong was called up to the South Korean national team for the

1998 Asian Games The 1998 Asian Games (), officially known as the 13th Asian Games and the XIII Asiad, was an Asian multi-sport event celebrated in Bangkok, Thailand from December 6 to 20, 1998, with 377 events in 36 sports and disciplines participated by 6,554 ...

, which included professional players for the first time ever. He was the only amateur catcher on the roster.

Notable international careers

Professional career

Doosan Bears

Hong was drafted by the

Doosan Bears The Doosan Bears ( ko, 두산 베어스) are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Seoul. Founded in 1982, they are a member of the KBO League. The Bears have won six Korean Series titles (1982, 1995, 2001, 2015, 2016, and 2019) and ...

in the first round of the KBO Draft after graduating from

in 1999. In his first season, he batted a respectable .258 with 16 home runs and 63 RBI, and earned the starting position behind the plate in the Bears. Hong ended up earning KBO Rookie of the Year Award honors, becoming the first Bear since

Yoon Suk-Hwan Yoon may refer to: *Yoon (Korean name), the ninth most common Korean family name *Yoon, stage name of Shim Ja-yoon, member of K-Pop group STAYC *Yōon, a feature of the Japanese language *Prabda Yoon (born 1973), a Thai novelist See also *Yun (disa ...

in 1984 to win the award. In 2000, his

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

rose to .290, leading the league in batting average until the All-Star break. In September, Hong was selected as a member of the

that won their first olympic medal at the

2000 Summer Olympics The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...

in Sydney, Australia. In the tourney, he batted .240 with a home run and 3 RBI, sharing a starting position behind the plate with

Park Kyung-Oan Park Kyung-oan (born July 11, 1972 in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, South Korea) is a former South Korean baseball catcher and former Olympic bronze medalist. A four-time Golden Glove winner, Park is considered by many to be one of the best catchers i ...

of the

Hyundai Unicorns The Hyundai Unicorns () were a South Korean professional baseball team based in Suwon. They were a member of the KBO League. The Unicorns won the KBO championship four times (1998, 2000, 2003 and 2004). The Unicorns were dissolved after the 20 ...

. In 2004, Hong led the KBO league in

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * ''H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album se ...

(165), appearing in 133 all regular season games as a starting catcher. He was third in

(.329) and fifth in RBI (86), smacking 14

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s and stealing 10 bases, and won his second Golden Glove Award as a

. During the 2005 season, due to his hamstring injury and defensive deficiencies, Hong began to split his time between catching and designating hitting. After the season, he announced that he would not give up his catching position in the Bears, and his intention came into conflict with the team's manager Kim Kyung-Moon. In the beginning of the 2007 season, he was sidelined with hamstring injury, and the Bears' backup catcher Chae Sang-Byung filled Hong's void behind the plate. Hong came back as the starting catcher for the Bears in the middle of the season. His offense, however, did not perform at the level expected, as he spent the majority of the season platooning with Chae Sang-Byung, and amid much controversy the manager Kim eventually named Chae the starter for the end of the season. In 2008, as a full-time designated hitter, Hong finished runner-up in

with .331 and fourth in

(140). After the season, he won his third Golden Glove Award as a designated hitter. In a broadcast program, which appeared after retirement, he introduced a story of his past experience with Stephen Blas' syndrome. Steven Blass syndrome refers to a syndrome in which a baseball player suffers from poor control, such as a sudden strike. It is a term derived from a real example of Steve Blas, a right-hander who led Pittsburgh to the World Series title in 1971. Hong Sung-heun's frequent defensive errors at the time were also due to skills problems caused by suffering from Steven Blas syndrome

/ref>

Lotte Giants

Hong became a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

after the 2008 season and signed a four-year deal with the

Lotte Giants The Lotte Giants ( ko, 롯데 자이언츠) are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Busan. They are a member of the KBO League. The Lotte Giants are owned by Lotte Corporation, which also owns the Chiba Lotte Marines of Nippon Pro ...

on November 27, 2008. In 2009, Hong noyce was runner-up in

again with a career-high .371, only .001 behind league-leader

Park Yong-Taik Park Yong-taik (Hangul: 박용택, Hanja: 朴龍澤) (born April 21, 1979) is a South Korean outfielder who has played his entire career for the LG Twins in the KBO League. With 2,504 career hits, he is the all-time career hit leader in the KBO. ...

of the

LG Twins LG Corporation (or LG Group) (), formerly Lucky-Goldstar from 1983 to 1995 (Korean: ''Leokki Geumseong''; ), is a South Korean multinational conglomerate founded by Koo In-hwoi and managed by successive generations of his family. It is ...

. On December 11, 2009, he won his fourth the Golden Glove Award in Designated hitter nomination for two consecutive years. In 2010, Hong was runner-up in

, RBI,

Slugging percentage In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at bats for a given player, ...

OPS In ancient Roman religion, Ops or ''Opis'' (Latin: "Plenty") was a fertility deity and earth goddess of Sabine origin. Her equivalent in Greek mythology was Rhea. Iconography In Ops' statues and coins, she is figured sitting down, as Chthon ...

, third in

On-base percentage In baseball statistics, on-base percentage (OBP) measures how frequently a batter reaches base. An official Major League Baseball (MLB) statistic since 1984, it is sometimes referred to as on-base average (OBA), as it is rarely presented as a ...

and fourth in

Homeruns In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is ...

. On July 24, 2010, he became All-star Game MVP. He also became the most voted All-star game player of KBO history. On December 11, 2010, he won his fifth the Golden Glove Award in Designated hitter nomination for three consecutive years. He announced his retirement from active service on November 21, 2016. He has since moved to the U.S. under Park Chan-ho's introduction to take training as a leader and coach the San Diego Padres Rookie team.

Awards and honors

*2001 Golden Glove Award (Catcher) *2004 Golden Glove Award (Catcher) *2008 Golden Glove Award (Designated hitter) *2009 Golden Glove Award (Designated hitter) *2010 Golden Glove Award (Designated hitter) *2011 Golden Glove Award (Designated hitter)

Interesting record

No. 2 batting average for the third consecutive year. (2008~2010) First catcher to record the most hits in a season. (2004)

Notable international careers

Filmography

Television shows

Awards and nominations

Personal life

Hong married former model Kim Jung-im in 2004. They have a son and a daughter.

References

External links

* Career statistics and player information at th
KBO official website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hong, Sung-Heon 1977 births 2006 World Baseball Classic players Asian Games medalists in baseball Baseball players at the 1998 Asian Games Baseball players at the 2000 Summer Olympics Baseball players at the 2002 Asian Games Doosan Bears players KBO League catchers KBO League designated hitters KBO League Rookie of the Year Award winners Kyung Hee University alumni Living people Lotte Giants players Medalists at the 2000 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for South Korea Olympic baseball players of South Korea Olympic medalists in baseball Sportspeople from Gangwon Province, South Korea South Korean baseball players Medalists at the 1998 Asian Games Medalists at the 2002 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for South Korea