There are a lot of ways that Byung-Hyun Kim might have been remembered.
He came into the majors from Korea at a time when Asian players were first experiencing widespread success, so he might have been remembered as part of that particular migration of talent. His throwing motion was unique and could have been a fond recollection for baseball fans. Kim's prodigious strikeout totals rivaled those of Billy Wagner and could have led to him being remembered as an inconsistent K specialist. These were all possibilities, but that’s not the way that it worked out.
Instead, Kim is going to go down as a pitcher who gave up more than his fair share of huge home runs. He’s turned out to be “A Man for All Homers.”
Now, there are plenty of pitchers that have gone down in the annals of baseball history for giving up the long ball. Some are known for giving up crushing game-winners (see: Mitch Williams giving up the Joe Carter home run) and others are known for serving up a milestone shot (see: Al Downing allowing Hank Aaron’s 715th homer). What makes Kim unique is that he is a member of both clubs.
Here are the memorable bombs that Kim has given up in his seven-year career:
The Tino Home Run. Let me set the scene: It is Game Four of the World Series and the Diamondbacks lead the Yankees by a score of 3-1 at The Stadium. A win puts Arizona up three games to one in the series and virtually slams the door on New York. Curt Schilling gives way to closer Byung-Hyun Kim, who gets through the eighth before serving up a two-run, two-out homer to Tino Martinez in the bottom of the ninth inning. Yankee Stadium goes crazy. Kim immediately joins the Mitch Williams Club and looks on from the mound, completely stunned.
The Jeter Home Run. Many of you already know that this blast came in the same game as the previous entry. For some reason, Bob Brenly left Kim in the game despite the fact that his closer had already thrown more than a full inning, and Kim rewarded this horrendous decision by promptly giving up a leadoff blast to Jeter that won the game for the Yankees and nearly caused Yankee Stadium to spontaneously combust.
The Brosius Home Run. This was probably the worst of the three World Series blasts that Kim allowed, because it was the number nine hitter in the order (classic Yankees, by the way, in the spirit of Bucky “F’ing” Dent and Aaron “F’ing” Boone). In case you forgot this moment, here it is again: The Diamondbacks somehow pull themselves together after the horrible Game Four loss and they ride Miguel Batista to a two-run lead in the ninth inning. Once again, Brenly goes to his frail, frightened (and now overworked) closer. Kim proceeds to give up another two-out, game-tying blast to Scott Brosius. The earth actually shakes, if just for a moment. The Yankees go on to win the game and seemingly take control of the series before Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling bail Kim out by prevailing in the desert. (This was probably the best World Series I've ever seen, by the way.)
Article comments
1 - Matthew T. Sussman
That DVD is the best DVD ever created.
(P.S. - B.H. Kim still won Sunday's game.)
2 - Adam Hoff
Yes, he did get the W. But I have to say, I hardly noticed. And that is the shame of it all for Kim - no matter what he does from this point on (short of throwing several no-hitters or winning some Cy Young awards), he is going to go down in history as the guy that gave up all those home runs. He's the ultimate wrong place, wrong time guy.
I agree, that DVD is great.
3 - -E
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4 - Dave Boyce
Great summary! What a hard luck story.
If, after the Martinez homer, Kim could have signaled the pitching coach to flip a switch and make the mound slowly sink with Kim standing on it looking plateward utterly stunned while slowly disappearing under ground, whereupon he could jump off and let it come back up without him, I think he would not have hesitated.