By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, July 24 (Yonhap) -- Fans of the Samsung Lions have seen two very different versions of their star closer Kim Jae-yoon this season.

In 27 outings at home, Daegu Samsung Lions Park in the southeastern city of Daegu, Kim has been knocked around to the tune of a 5.33 ERA in 25 1/3 innings. He has allowed 15 earned runs on 16 hits, while recording 21 strikeouts against 15 walks. The only two home runs he has surrendered this year have both come at the stadium. He has a 2-4 record with 14 saves there.

In 18 games away from Daegu, however, Kim has not allowed a run in 18 1/3 innings. He has struck out 25 and walked only five while surrendering just nine hits. He is a perfect 3-0 on the road with 10 saves.

Even considering the fact that Daegu Samsung Lions Park is the most hitter-friendly stadium in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), these home-away splits for Kim are quite jarring, leaving the pitcher himself baffled.

"I try not to get conscious of those numbers but I do think it has been quite strange, the way things have gone for me this year," Kim said Thursday, after earning his third relief win on the road in a 3-1 victory over the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. "It is not as though I change my pitch sequence at home or I feel intimidated. I find it odd that numbers are what they are, but I am trying to keep the same mindset whether I pitch at home or on the road."

The trend is not new for Kim. In 2025, He had a 2.81 ERA in 34 road games, but a 7.71 ERA in 29 games at home. His opponents batted .315 against Kim in Daegu but just .197 away from the city. Kim also had better road numbers than home numbers in 2024, his first season with the Lions.

Lions manager Park Jin-man has tried to protect Kim, saying in recent media scrums that every pitcher struggles at the Daegu stadium and Kim should not worry too much about pitching on his home mound.

"I appreciate his support," Kim said with a smile. "I think many other pitchers feel the same way about pitching there."

Kim's latest appearance came in a tough spot. He took the ball with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning with the game tied at 1-1 and the bases loaded. Pinch hitter Choi Joo-hwan swung on a first-pitch forkball and hit a flyball to center field, but it was not deep enough for Lim Byeong-uk to score the winning run from third base.

Kim then retired Matt Davidson, who had hit a game-tying solo home run in his previous at-bat, on a pop fly to third baseman Kim Young-woong. At 1-0 count, Kim Jae-yoon challenged Davidson with a high fastball, and the slugger got underneath the ball for the harmless out.

Kim came back out for the 10th and pitched around a one-out single. After the Lions scored twice in the top 11th, Kim closed out the deal with a scoreless bottom 11th.

"As I was walking toward the mound in the ninth, I wondered if I would be able to stop those guys from scoring," Kim said. "I figured they would have a pinch hitter up. Joo-hwan has had some success against me and he has some power. I tried not to make a mistake against him and I was lucky that his fly to center didn't go very deep. With Davidson, he is such an aggressive hitter that I wanted to challenge him with a high fastball and get him to swing."

Kim ended up throwing 2 2/3 innings, his highest for a single game as a member of the Lions. His innings total for the season has reached 43 2/3 and he is on pace to surpass 57 2/3 from last season.

"I have been trying to take care of my body and get as much rest as possible," Kim said of pitching through the dog days of summer. "If I run out of gas, it will affect my mechanics as well. Honestly, I have had a difficult stretch lately but I have been doing what I can to stay in good form."

jeeho@yna.co.kr

(END)

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