Kang Jung-ho posted a proof shot taken with Choi Ji-man (32, Pittsburgh Pirates) and Kim Ha-seong (28, San Diego Padres) under the phrase “My juniors, cheer up” on his SNS. Kang Jung-ho also uploaded a picture of him visiting a local Korean restaurant and chatting with juniors playing in the major leagues. Choi Ji-man and Kim Ha-seong spent three days from the 25th in San Diego, California, USA. His team, Pittsburgh and San Diego, played three matches in a row during the week at San Diego’s home stadium, Petco Park.
On the 25th, the first game of his 3-game series, Kang Jeong-ho caught a foul ball while watching the juniors’ game from the stands at Petco Park and became the center of attention. Kang Jung-ho, who was in the stands, stood up when the foul ball flew in and caught it with his bare hands without a glove, receiving applause from the Petco Park crowd. The American multiple media said, “Look at this fan. Isn’t it like a baseball player? 안전놀이터 This is Kang Jung-ho, who played for Pittsburgh.” Could the energy of a major league senior come through? Choi Ji-man shot his 6th home run of the season that day, and Kim Ha-seong also played an active role with 1 hit, 1 walk and 1 run in 3 at-bats. The game ended with Pittsburgh winning 3-2.
Kang Jeong-ho graduated from Gwangju Ilgo and joined Hyundai in the 2006 rookie draft with the 8th pick in the 2nd round, 1st round. Afterwards, in 2014, when he was a Hero, he wore a Pittsburgh uniform in the Major League thanks to his batting average of 3.56, 40 homers, 117 RBIs and 103 points in 117 games in 2014. Kang Jeong-ho, who retired at the end of the 2019 season, has a career batting average of .254 in 297 games, 46 homers, 144 RBIs, 120 runs, and an OPS of .796.
Kang Jung-ho is a serious criminal who has been caught drunk driving three times off the pitch. In 2009, 2011, and in December 2016, he was sentenced to 8 months in prison and 2 years probation for causing a drunken hit-and-run accident, not a simple drunk driving. At the time, he was drunk and escaped to a hotel after receiving a guard rail and hid, and during the investigation, a passenger falsely stated that he was driving. It was a fatal blow both legally and ethically.
Kang Jung-ho heated up the domestic baseball world in March of last year due to the controversy over his return to Kiwoom. Kiwoom suddenly requested approval from the KBO to return to the voluntary termination of Kang Jeong-ho, and prior to this, he signed a contract with the player for the 2022 season. However, his comeback attempt was futile. While KBO President Heo Gu-yeon ex officio invalidated the contract with Kiwoom, Kang Jeong-ho, who received criticism from the public, withdrew his return.