Bears' Fernandez falls 1 shy of 200 hits in KBO

▲ Jose Miguel Fernandez of the Doosan Bears (L) is congratulated by his teammates after hitting a solo home run against the Kia Tigers in the top of the sixth inning of a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, 330 kilometers south of Seoul, on Oct. 29, 2020. (Yonhap)

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Bears' Fernandez falls 1 shy of 200 hits in KBO

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- Jose Miguel Fernandez of the Doosan Bears came up just one hit short of the 200-hit mark in South Korean baseball on Friday, while also falling three shy of setting a new single season record.

The designated hitter for the Bears went 1-for-4 against the Kiwoom Heroes in the teams' final Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular season game at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. Fernandez ended with 199 hits while playing all 144 games for the second straight season.

Last year, he had 197 hits to lead all players. He was taking aim at the all-time record of 201 hits, set by Seo Geon-chang of the Heroes in 2014, but once again couldn't even get to the 200-plateau.

Batting in the No. 2 spot, Fernandez got a single off starter Eric Jokisch in the bottom of the first inning. In his second time up, with two outs in the bottom second, Fernandez grounded out to second baseman Addison Russell.

Fernandez stepped up for the third time with one out in the bottom fifth, and grounded out to first base.

In the bottom seventh, Fernandez grounded out to second again. He didn't get another plate appearance as the Bears closed out a 2-0 victory.

As a consolation prize, Fernandez became the sixth player in league history to lead the league in hits in consecutive seasons.


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