▲ Jared Hoying of the KT Wiz tosses his bat after hitting a two-run home run against the Doosan Bears in the top of the eighth inning during Game 4 of the Korean Series at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Nov. 18, 2021. (Yonhap)
▲ Jared Hoying of the KT Wiz (L) celebrates his two-run home run against the Doosan Bears in the top of the eighth inning during Game 4 of the Korean Series at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Nov. 18, 2021. (Yonhap)
▲ Jared Hoying of the KT Wiz (R) poses with the sign showing him as the Player of the Game for Game 4 of the Korean Series against the Doosan Bears at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on Nov. 18, 2021. (Yonhap)

Korean Series-player

Jared Hoying caps off 'unbelievable, crazy year' with big night in Korean Series clincher

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, Nov. 19 (Yonhap) -- Talk about a wild ride. Outfielder Jared Hoying went from wondering if his baseball career was finished in spring to delivering a key home run to help his club capture a South Korean championship this week.

Hoying went 4-for-5 with a home run, a double and three RBIs for the KT Wiz on Thursday, as they defeated the Doosan Bears 8-4 to complete a four-game sweep in the Korean Series.

This was Hoying's second tour of duty in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). He'd played for the Hanwha Eagles from 2018 to 2020, getting waived midway through last year amid struggles at the plate.

It wasn't until May this year that Hoying resurfaced, signing a minor league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays. He even got into a couple of games with the big league club in June, before landing back in the KBO later in the summer.

"After I got released by Hanwha last year... I thought I was done with baseball," Hoying said after Thursday's victory at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. "Then I signed with the Blue Jays in May. I didn't think I'd ever come back to Korea. And here I am, we just won a championship. What an unbelievable and a crazy year. Winning a championship, that's what I wanted to do when I got here, and that's what we did."

Hoying signed with the Wiz in June as a midseason replacement for Zoilo Almonte. The Wiz were in first place at the time, and that's where they finished the regular season, too. Hoying batted .239 with 11 home runs and 52 RBIs in 68 games. He had the second-most RBIs in the KBO in the second half of the season.

He scuffled a bit early in the Korean Series. Then in his first at-bat in Game 4, he popped out on a 3-0 count with runners at the corners.

But Hoying wasn't retired again the rest of the night. He had an RBI single in the second and added a hit in the fourth. That was followed up by a double in the sixth.

Then with the Wiz holding on to a 6-3 lead, Hoying provided much-needed breathing room with a two-run bomb to right field. He became the first foreign player to collect four hits in a Korean Series game.

Hoying finished with a .400/.438/.800 line, leading the team with three doubles and 12 total bases, and tying for the team lead with six hits.

Hoying admired the no-doubter homer and casually tossed the bat aside as he began the trot around the bases.

The usually understated Hoying said that was "the first time I've ever flipped my bat my entire life."

"I was just so excited I didn't know what to do. I just flipped it," Hoying said with a smile. "I felt like I was running on clouds. That's what you dream of as a little kid, hitting a home run in a championship game. To be able to do that is something I'll never forget."

At 32, Hoying will enter another offseason of uncertainty. He said he'd love to be back with the Wiz "if they want me to" but added any contract talks can wait.

"I don't want to worry about next year (yet)," he said.

(END)

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