Na Sung-bum

Na Sung-bum
NC Dinos – No. 47
Center fielder
Born: (1989-10-03) October 3, 1989
Bats: Left Throws: Left
KBO debut
May 7, 2013, for the NC Dinos
KBO statistics
(through 2017)
Batting average .314
Home runs 118
RBI 512
Stolen bases 73
Teams
Career highlights and awards
  • KBO All-Star (2013-2018)
  • KBO Golden Glove Award (2014, 2015)
Medal record
Men's baseball
Representing  South Korea
2015 WBSC Premier12
2015 Tokyo Team

Na Sung-bum (Hangul: 나성범; born October 3, 1989 in Gwangju, South Korea) is a South Korean outfielder. He bats and throws left-handed. Na was selected tenth overall by the NC Dinos in the 2012 KBO Draft.

Amateur career

While attending Yonsei University, Na was considered the best hitting pitcher in the South Korean collegiate baseball league. As a freshman in 2008 Na batted a team-leading .329 with 11 RBI and posted a 3–1 record and a 1.70 ERA with 83 strikeouts (runner-up in the collegiate league) in 74.0 innings pitched.

As a sophomore in 2009 Na led the collegiate league in home runs (4) as a cleanup hitter and amassed 7 wins (2 complete games – 1 shutout) with a 2.93 ERA as a starting pitcher. Also, he was runner-up in strikeouts (76) and third in RBI (23). After the season, he was selected for the South Korea national baseball team and participated in the 2009 Asian Baseball Championship as a designated hitter and relief pitcher.

As a senior in 2011, Na struggled a bit posting a career-worst 3.76 ERA, but fanned 68 batters. In September 2011, Na was called up to the South Korean national team again for the 2011 Baseball World Cup held in Panama.

Notable international careers

Year  Venue  Competition Team Individual Note
 2009  Japan  Asian Baseball Championship  .182 (2-for 11), 1 RBI, 1 R
 0–0; 13.50 ERA (2 G, 2.0 IP, 3 ER, 0 K)
 2010  United States  Korea vs USA Baseball Championship   0W-5L   0–1; 3.38 ERA (3 G, 5.1 IP, 2 ER, 4 K) 
Japan  World University Baseball Championship  4th  0–1; 11.12 ERA (3 G, 5.2 IP, 7 ER, 9 K) 
 2011  Panama  Baseball World Cup 6th  0–0; 6.48 ERA (5 G, 8.1 IP, 6 ER, 10 K) 

Professional career

Na Sung-bum originally was drafted by the NC Dinos as a pitcher. But he changed his position to outfielder because Kim Kyung-moon suggested that. In 2012, he played 94 games in the farm league, finishing with a .303 batting average, 16 home runs, and 67 RBI. He won RBI leaders and Home Run Title.

In his first full season the next year, when he hit 14 home runs with a .243 batting average and 64 RBI, Na was runner-up in the KBO Rookie of the Year voting, behind team fellow Lee Jae-hak.

Na broke out in 2014 when he hit 30 home runs, batted .329 and drove in 101 runs, and quickly became a favorite of the Dinos' organization and a household name among the team's fans, voted the top competition at the KBO All-Star voting. He garnered 968,013 votes from fans and another 193 votes from KBO coaches and fellow players to lead the 22 All-Star starters.[1]

Na maintained his status as one of the league's elite power-hitting outfielders in 2015, when finished ninth in the league with a .326 batting average, drove in 135 runs (fourth in the league) and slugged 28 home runs (seventh in the league).

Despite getting off to a hot start on the 2016 season, cold streaks in the second half of the year ruined chances of Na putting together a great year. However, he finished the year with respectable offensive numbers, finishing the year with 22 home runs, 113 RBI and a .309 batting average.

Notable international careers

 Year   Venue  Competition Team Individual Note
2014 South Korea  Asian Games   .400 (8-for 20), 6 RBI, 7 R, 2 SB 
2015 Japan  Premier12  .091 (1-for 11), 1 R

References

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