The national baseball team, led by coach Ryu Joong-il, won 2-0 over Chinese Taipei in the baseball finals of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games held on the 7th and achieved its fourth consecutive victory in the competition. The process from competition preparation to group stage, super round and final was not smooth, but the national team, led by young players, overcame the difficulties.
Although several players' performances were outstanding, Moon Bo-kyung, who was in charge of both corners of the infield along with Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha), also contributed greatly to the team.
Until the group stage, Moon Bo-kyung's presence was not that great. His performance was 3 games, 2 hits in 10 at-bats, a batting average of 0.200, and 4 RBIs. Moon Bo-kyung performed poorly compared to Choi Ji-hoon (SSG) and Yoon Dong-hee (Lotte), who hit hard with a batting average of over .500.
Moon Bo-kyung, who went silent with no hits in 4 at-bats in the first game of the Super Round against Japan, recorded 1 hit and 2 RBIs in 5 against China in the second game of the Super Round. Although he only had one hit, it was encouraging that he had an extra-base hit in his last at-bat. Moon Bo-kyung hit a double to right-center field with 2 outs and runners on first and second base in the top of the 8th inning with the team leading 6-0, bringing in both runners and raising expectations for the finals.
Expectations became reality. In the finals the next day, Moon Bo-kyung came out as the leadoff hitter in the top of the second inning, hit the first pitch from Taiwanese starter Lin Yu-min, and hit a double to right field, immediately taking the scoring opportunity. Afterwards, Kim Joo-won (NC)'s sacrifice fly with 1 out and 3rd base on base rushed home, giving the team the lead, and ultimately, their success in overtaking the team led to victory in the finals.
The moment the national team won the gold medal, everyone shared joy on the ground, and some players even shed tears. Moon Bo-kyung, who was relieved of his burden, also looked in tears.
Moon Bo-kyung, who returned to Korea through Incheon International Airport Passenger Terminal 1 on the afternoon of the 8th after finishing the competition, said, "I didn't cry (after the finals), but I was moved to tears. I almost cried," and added, "It's not just one person, it's good because everyone worked hard. I achieved the result. I think everything was really good. (The moment I won the gold medal) I think I was in the top five since I started playing baseball. I was more nervous than I thought, and there were times when I felt like the Taegeuk symbol on my chest was heavy. League “I think I had a bigger thought that I had to do well differently,” he said.
The most memorable moment was, of course, getting the last out in the final against Taiwan. In the top of the 9th inning, with the team ahead 2-0, with one out and runners on first and second base, second baseman Hye-seong Kim caught a ground ball from Go Woo-seok (LG) and tagged the runner on first base, and completed a double play by passing the ball to first baseman Bo-kyung Moon. In this way, Korea's fourth consecutive victory in the tournament was completed.
Moon Bo-kyung said, "The ball suddenly overlapped with the electronic display, so I couldn't see it for a moment, but I caught it with the thought that I had to catch it somehow. Since there was no video review, I thought I shouldn't run out first, so I stepped on the first base all the way, ( "When I saw the first base umpire's out gesture and ran out, I think I thought, 'We really won, we won,'" he said, recalling the situation at the time.
Moon Bo-kyung, who boasted of his outstanding hitting skills before being called up to the national team, remained silent from the group stage until the first game of the super round. Still, he did not lose confidence. He said, "I thought it was a bit bad, but (Kim) Hye-sung and the other members of the national team said that the other batted balls were also caught because of bad luck and not because the condition was bad, so the results were not good. So when I thought about it, I thought it was just a missed hit. “I felt like it didn’t come out, and after hearing that, I thought, ‘I don’t need to be discouraged,’ and I think I tried to be more confident.”
What made me forget my regrets was a double hit in the first at-bat of the finals. It would be a lie if she said she didn't feel pressured to face Lin Yu-min again, whom she had met just five days ago, but Moon Bo-kyung stood at bat, remembering the advice of her team's senior and captain Oh Ji-hwan (LG).
Moon Bo-kyung said, "I think the pitch was similar (to the second game of the group stage), but because it rained a lot, Taiwanese starting pitcher (Lin Yu-min)'s control part seemed to have been a bit difficult. The ball itself was good," and "(Oh) Ji-hwan was good. Even when I called him, he said, 'In times like that, you have to hit more boldly, and if you're in a difficult game with a high ball count, it's more difficult because the ball is so good, so you have to hit more boldly and confidently from the first pitch.'"
He continued, "First of all, I went in with that in mind that I had to hit it on the first pitch, but luckily, I think the timing was right and that's how I got the result. I went out at the right time for the fastball, and I think I just got the timing right.
Moon Bo-kyung, who moved to third base when Lin Yu-min threw a wild pitch after a double, was able to attempt a tag-up when Kim Joo-won sent the batted ball away from third base with one out and one out. Moon Bo-kyung laughed, "I had some time to spare, but I was a lot slower than I thought. Maybe it was because it rained a lot that day, so my legs didn't work out. While I was running, I think I thought, 'Why can't I run like this?' I think I'm just running slower."
Moon Bo-kyung, who was the starting third baseman for his team, played first base for the national team. Did he feel any pressure on defense? He said, "I didn't feel any pressure at all. I think I just focused on the game and tried to do well." He added, "There wasn't much difference in batted balls compared to when I saw a third baseman. It was just a different angle. The national team's infielders have really good shoulders, so the ball hit the ball." “It was a little difficult at first because it flew really hard, but I got used to it as I kept receiving balls during training,” he said with a smile.
Moon Bo-kyung recalled the memory of not receiving a throw from shortstop Kim Joo-won in the top of the 9th inning during the first game of the Super Round against Japan. The official record was a throw error by the shortstop, but Moon Bo-kyung, who thought he was largely responsible, said, "I was able to catch it well, but it went into the glove and came out. I should have caught it somehow, but (the team) was in a difficult situation because I couldn't catch the ball. “I was really sorry,” he said.