List of KBO players to hit for the cycle

In baseball, completing the cycle is the accomplishment of hitting a single, a double, a triple, and a home run in the same game.[1] Collecting the hits in that order is known as a "natural cycle", which has occurred two times in KBO League. The cycle itself is rare in KBO, occurring 31 times since Oh Dae-seok [ko]'s first cycle in 1982, the first season of KBO League. In terms of frequency within the KBO league, it is a record that is more frequent than no-hitter (19 times in KBO history). Of the 10 current KBO League teams, only the SSG Landers have never had at least one player hit for the cycle.

Yang Joon-hyuk was the first to hit multiple cycles.

The most cycles hit by a player in KBO League is two, accomplished by Yang Joon-hyuk and Eric Thames. Playing for the Samsung Lions, Yang hit his first cycle on August 23, 1996, and the next on April 15, 2003. And Thames became the first player in KBO League history to hit for the cycle two times in a season, by hiiting for the cycle on April 9 and August 11 in the 2015 season.[2] Oh Yoon-Suk [ko] is the only player to have hit a grand slam as the home run of the cycle.[3]

The 2016 and 2017 seasons saw the most cycles hit in a single season—three times. The longest period of time between two players hitting for the cycle is one day shy of 1902 days. The drought has lasted from Oh Dae-seok [ko]'s cycle in 1982 until Lee Kang-Don [ko]'s in 1987.

Cycles by player

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Key to symbols in player table
*
Denotes a natural cycle
§
Indicates that a hit required for the cycle was acquired during extra innings
(x)
Number of cycles recorded to that point (if the player recorded more than one)
KBO League players who have hit for the cycle, the date of its occurrence, team, league, and opponent
No. Player Date Team Opponent Stadium Ref
1 Oh Dae-seok [ko] June 12, 1982 Samsung Lions Sammi Superstars Gudeok Baseball Stadium
2 Lee Kang-Don [ko] August 27, 1987 Binggrae Eagles OB Bears Daejeon Hanbat Baseball Stadium
3 Jung Koo-seon [ko] August 31, 1987 Lotte Giants Cheongbo Pintos Incheon Sungui Baseball Stadium
4 Kang Seok-Chun [ko] August 4, 1990 Binggrae Eagles Pacific Dolphins Daejeon Hanbat Baseball Stadium
5 Lim Hyeong-seok [ko] August 23, 1992 OB Bears Lotte Giants Jamsil Baseball Stadium
6 Seo Yong-Bin [ko] April 16, 1994 LG Twins Lotte Giants Sajik Baseball Stadium
7 Kim Eung-Gook [ko]* April 14, 1996 Lotte Giants Hanhwa Eagles Sajik Baseball Stadium
8 Yang Joon-hyuk (1) August 23, 1996 Samsung Lions Hyundai Unicorns Daegu Baseball Stadium
9 Manny Martínez May 26, 2001 Samsung Lions Haitai Tigers Daegu Baseball Stadium
10 Jeon Jun-ho July 6, 2001 Hyundai Unicorns Samsung Lions Daegu Baseball Stadium
11 Yang Joon-hyuk (2) April 15, 2003 Samsung Lions Hyundai Unicorns Suwon Baseball Stadium
12 Shin Jong-Gil [ko] September 21, 2004 Hanhwa Eagles Doosan Bears Daejeon Hanbat Baseball Stadium
13 Ahn Chi-Yongl [ko] June 26, 2008 LG Twins Samsung Lions Daegu Baseball Stadium
14 Lee Jong-wook April 11, 2009 Doosan Bears LG Twins Jamsil Baseball Stadium
15 Lee Byung-kyu July 5, 2013 LG Twins Nexen Heroes Mokdong Baseball Stadium
16 Oh Jae-won May 23, 2014 Doosan Bears Hanhwa Eagles Jamsil Baseball Stadium
17 Eric Thames (1) April 9, 2015 NC Dinos KIA Tigers Gwangju-Kia Champions Field
18 Eric Thames (2) August 11, 2015 NC Dinos Nexen Heroes Mokdong Baseball Stadium
19 Kim Joo-chan April 15, 2016 KIA Tigers Nexen Heroes Gwangju-Kia Champions Field
20 Park Kun-woo June 16, 2016 Doosan Bears KIA Tigers Gwangju-Kia Champions Field
21 Choi Hyoung-woo August 18, 2016 Samsung Lions kt wiz Suwon Baseball Stadium
22 Seo Geon-chang April 7, 2017 Nexen Heroes Doosan Bears Jamsil Baseball Stadium
23 Jung Jin-ho June 7, 2017 Doosan Bears Samsung Lions Jamsil Baseball Stadium
24 Roger Bernadina June 7, 2017 KIA Tigers kt wiz Gwangju-Kia Champions Field
25 Mel Rojas Jr. May 29, 2018 kt wiz Samsung Lions Daegu Samsung Lions Park
26 Kim Hye-seong May 30, 2020 Kiwoom Heroes kt wiz Gocheok Sky Dome
27 Oh Yun-Seok [ko] October 4, 2020 Lotte Giants Hanhwa Eagles Sajik Baseball Stadium
28 Yang Eui-ji April 29, 2021 NC Dinos Samsung Lions Daegu Samsung Lions Park
29 Jung-hoo Lee October 25, 2021 Kiwoom Heroes Samsung Lions Daejeon Hanwha Life Eagles Park
30 Kang Seung-ho September 15, 2023 Doosan Bears KIA Tigers Gwangju-Kia Champions Field
31 Kim Do-Young [ko]* July 23, 2024 KIA Tigers NC Dinos Gwangju-Kia Champions Field

Cycles by franchise

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List of franchises, showing KBO League-active dates and numbers of cycles achieved and allowed
Franchise Active dates Cycles hit Cycles allowed
OB Bears / Doosan Bears 1982–present 6 3
Samsung Lions 1982–present 5 5
Haitai Tigers / KIA Tigers 1982–present 3 4
MBC Chungyong / LG Twins 1982–present 3 1
Lotte Giants 1982–present 3 2
Binggrae Eagles / Hanhwa Eagles 1986–present 3 4
SK Wyverns / SSG Landers 2000–present 0 0
Woori Heroes / Heroes / Seoul Heroes / Nexen Heroes / Kiwoom Heroes 2008–present 3 3
NC Dinos 2013–present 3 1
kt wiz 2015–present 1 3
Sammi Superstars / Chungbo Pintos / Pacific Dolphins / Hyundai Unicorns 1982–2007 1 5
Ssangbangwool Raiders 1991–1999 0 0

See also

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References

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Inline citations
  1. ^ Dickson, Paul (1999). The new Dickson baseball dictionary. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 250. ISBN 0-15-600580-8. Retrieved September 10, 2011.
  2. ^ 역사 쓴 테임즈, 한 시즌 2번 ‘사이클링 히트. Korean Broadcasting System (in Korean). Korean Broadcasting System Corporation. August 12, 2015. Archived from the original on July 28, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2024.
  3. ^ 만루포+사이클링히트… 오윤석, 프로야구 사상 첫 ‘대박’쳤다. Kukmin Ilb (in Korean). Kukmin Ilbo Corporation. October 5, 2020. Archived from the original on July 28, 2024. Retrieved July 28, 2024.