Jung ho Kang

Early life

While attending Gwangju Jeil High School, Kang's main position was catcher.

In 2004, Kang was selected for the South Korean national under-18 team as a third baseman and was part of the team that won bronze at the World Junior Baseball Championship.

In July 2005, Kang helped Gwangju Jeil High School win the Golden Lion Flag Championship, winning the Outstanding Pitcher Award and the RBI title.

Hyundai Unicorns

Kang was drafted by the Hyundai Unicorns in the second round of the 2006 Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) First-Year Player Draft. Kang struggled to make an impact in his first two seasons. In his rookie season, he played 10 games and batted .150. He struck out eight times in 21 plate appearances. In 2007, he appeared in 20 games and hit .133.

Nexen Heroes

In 2008, Hyundai sold the Unicorns, who subsequently became defunct and were replaced with a new team, Woori Heroes (renamed the Nexen Heroes in 2009). Kang became the starting shortstop for the Heroes in 2008, appearing in 116 games, batting .271 with 8 home runs and 47 RBI.

In 2009, Kang had an impressive offensive season. He finished the season with a .286 batting average, 23 home runs, 81 RBI, a .508 slugging percentage, 136 hits, and 71 runs scored. Kang tied Hong Sung-heon of the Lotte Giants for the league lead in doubles (33).

In 2010, Kang had his first season with a .300 batting average. He finished with an average of .301, as well as 12 home runs and 58 RBI. His defensive play earned him his first KBO Gold Glove Award. As a member of the South Korean national baseball team, Kang also won the gold medal at the 2010 Asian Games, where he hit 3 home runs in 13 at-bats.

In 2011, Kang regressed slightly from his two previous seasons, hitting .282 with 9 home runs and 63 RBI.

In 2012, Kang improved, hitting .314 with 25 home runs (2nd in the league), 82 RBI, 77 runs scored, and a career-high 21 stolen bases. He would also win his second Gold Glove Award.

In March 2013, Kang competed in the 2013 World Baseball Classic.

In the 2013 KBO season, Kang hit 22 home runs and had an OPS of .876. He also won his second straight Gold Glove Award, his third overall.

In 2014, Kang had his best season statistically, hitting .356 with 40 home runs and 117 RBI. He led the league in slugging percentage (.739) and OPS (1.198). He also finished second in home runs (40) and OBP (.459), third in RBI (117) and doubles (36), and fifth in runs scored (103). He also won his third straight Gold Glove Award, his fourth overall.

Pittsburgh Pirates

On December 22, 2014, it was announced that the Pittsburgh Pirates had won the bidding for Kang and would get the opportunity to negotiate a contract for him to move to Major League Baseball. The Pirates' winning bid was later revealed to be $5,002,015 (₩5,457,150,000). This transfer fee (posting system) was to be paid to the Nexen Heroes for the exclusive rights to negotiate a contract, and as compensation for the loss of Kang. To put this in perspective, at the time of the Kang signing, the record international transfer fee posted was the December 8, 2011 transfer of the RHP Yu Darvish from the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to the Texas Rangers for $51,703,411.

2015 season

On January 16, 2015, Kang signed a four-year, $11 million, contract with the Pirates, with an option for a fifth year.

Kang then flew into Pittsburgh to finalize the contract/meeting with the team doctors for a physical. There was no formal introduction to the fans, no press conference announcing the new signing.

Soon thereafter, January 25, 2015 - February 7, 2015, in preparation for his upcoming MLB debut, Kang decided to train with his former club, the defending KBO Champion Nexen Heroes, whom had arrived in Surprise, Arizona for their Spring Training (hosted at the spring training facility of the Texas Rangers). While there Kang focused almost exclusively on strength training. Although there was plenty of Korean language media coverage (from both Korean-based and U.S.-based) surrounding the historic transition of Kang as the first KBO position player to jump directly to the Major Leagues, there was very little domestic coverage of the story.

In Bradenton, Florida for spring training, Kang competed with Jordy Mercer for the starting shortstop job. In the first spring training game of 2015, in his second at-bat, Kang connected on a 0-1 fastball (middle-in) taking advantage of a mistake by Toronto right-handed starting pitcher Marco Estrada (catcher called for/wanted it down and away) driving an opposite field (right-center) solo home run in the third inning, helping the Pirates to a 5-0 lead, and eventual 8-7 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.

On April 4, 2015, Kang recorded his first Major League hit off Kyle Lohse of the Milwaukee Brewers, a flare just past the outstretched glove of shortstop Jean Segura. On April 21, Kang recorded his first RBI against the Chicago Cubs with a bases-clearing RBI double that gave the Pirates a 8–5 lead.

On May 3, (series game 3/3, Sunday, day game) in St. Louis, down 0-1 Kang came to bat to lead off the top of the 9th inning. Facing the hard-throwing right-handed St. Louis Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal, Kang connected on the first pitch of the inning sending a game-tying solo home into the left-center seats, knotting the game at 1–1.

On May 9, 2015, during a 7–5 win over the Cardinals, the Pirates became the first MLB team to turn a 4–5–4 triple play. The play occurred when the Cardinals' Yadier Molina lined out to second baseman Neil Walker. Walker threw to Kang at third base to double off Jhonny Peralta for the second out. Kang then threw the ball back to Walker, who was standing on second base, for the final out after Jason Heyward froze between second and third.

On September 8, 2015, Kang connected on an impressive 472-ft solo shot, his 14th of the season, on the road against the Cincinnati Reds.

On September 17, 2015, during a game against the Chicago Cubs, Kang was covering second base in a double play attempt. Baserunner Chris Coghlan attempted to break up the double play aggressively by sliding into Kang. Coghlan collided with Kang's left knee, instantly fracturing his leg and tearing his MCL. Kang was placed on the 60-day disabled list and would miss the remainder of the season, including the post season NL wild card game, which the Pittsburgh Pirates played host to the very same Chicago Cubs.

On October 7, during the pre-game introductions of the NL Wild Card game, a wheelchair-bound Kang was wheeled out onto the field, where he received a standing ovation. This was his first public appearance since the incident.

In 126 games played in 2015, Kang hit .287 with 15 HRs and 58 RBIs. He finished in third place for the National League's Rookie of the Year voting.

2016 season

On May 6, 2016, Kang played in his first MLB game since his September 17, 2015 injury. He hit two solo home runs in the game, contributing to the Pirates 4–2 road win over their NL Central division rival St. Louis Cardinals. In only 103 games, Kang ended the season batting .255 with a career-high 21 home runs and 62 RBIs.

2017 season

As a result of his recent legal troubles, the Pirates placed Kang, who was still stuck in South Korea, on the Restricted List on March 11. Kang was not on the Pirates' active roster or 40-man roster on Opening Day (April 3, 2017) as he could not attain a work visa to travel to the United States. On May 18, Kang's suspended sentence was upheld by a Korean court, further hindering his ability to play in the United States in 2017.

Legal troubles

In early July 2016, a sexual assault claim was made against Kang by a yet to be identified 23-year old Chicago woman. No charges were brought upon Kang, as the accuser would not cooperate with police investigation.

On December 1, 2016, Kang was reported to have been involved in a high-speed DUI-induced hit-and-run, fleeing the vehicle on foot. The incident was confirmed by released videos that were provided by both municipal (traffic) CCTV and Kang's very own on board dash cam. Kang was found guilty of his third DUI, and as a result, the initial request for a work visa to enter the United States for the 2017 season was denied.