(LEAD) Giants' Victor Reyes sets KBO single-season hit record

All News 20:15 October 01, 2024

(ATTN: ADDS details; ADDS and CHANGES photos; UPDATES with final season stats throughout)
By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Oct. 1 (Yonhap) -- Victor Reyes of the Lotte Giants set the South Korean baseball record for hits in a season on Tuesday with a single in his final at-bat.

Reyes collected his 202nd hit of his 2024 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season against the NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul. With the hit off reliever Kim Jae-yeol in the top of the ninth inning, Reyes eclipsed the previous record of 201 hits set by Seo Geon-chang as a member of the Nexen Heroes in 2014.

Reyes had tied the mark with a single in the fifth inning.

Victor Reyes of the Lotte Giants holds up a sign showing his record-setting 202 hits for the 2024 Korea Baseball Organization season after getting two hits against the NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, on Oct. 1, 2024. (Yonhap)

Seo set his record after playing in all 128 games that season. KBO teams today play 144 games each, and Reyes, who did not miss a game this year, set the record in the regular-season finale.

Reyes and Seo are the only two players in KBO history with at least 200 hits in a season. Seo, now a member of the Tigers, watched Reyes reach 200 on Saturday against his team.

The Giants put Reyes in the leadoff spot for the first time this season to maximize his opportunity, but the switch hitter opened the game by flying out to right field against starter Lee Jae-hak.

In the third, Reyes flied out to center field against Lee, before hitting a single off the right-hander in the fifth inning to pull in to a tie with Seo.

In the seventh, the switch-hitting Reyes batted from the right side against left-handed reliever Lim Jung-ho, but struck out swinging.

Victor Reyes of the Lotte Giants hits a single against the NC Dinos during the clubs' Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game for his record-breaking 202nd hit of the season at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, on Oct. 1, 2024. (Yonhap)

It appeared unlikely that Reyes would get another trip to the plate, but No. 8 hitter Go Seung-min blasted a two-run home run in the top of the ninth to ensure Reyes' turn would come up one last time.

Reyes made most of that opportunity by smacking a hit off the left-field wall. He was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double but it still went down as the record-setting single.

Reyes was greeted by his teammates and staff outside the dugout and was presented with flowers and a commemorative sign showing the number 202.

Victor Reyes of the Lotte Giants hits a single against the NC Dinos during the clubs' Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, on Oct. 1, 2024. It was Reyes' 201st hit of the season, tying the all-time record. (Yonhap)

Reyes led the KBO this season with 61 multihit games, including five four-hit games. He ranked second in batting average with .352, with Guillermo Heredia of the SSG Landers leading the way at .360.

The former major leaguer from Venezuela signed with the Giants for US$700,000 in December, with another $250,000 up for grabs in incentives.