The Hanwha Eagles took two rookies to the first-team spring camp who came in as nurturing players without being nominated in the rookie draft. It is all the more interesting because it is the choice of manager Kim Kyung-moon, who is capable of raising players who are highly likely and desperately needed regardless of the ranking of the nominations.토토사이트
Hanwha, led by head coach Kim Kyung-moon, left for Melbourne, Australia, where the first spring camp was set up through Incheon International Airport on the 22nd. It is a large-scale camp with 45 players, the most among the 10 clubs, with six rookies. At least one rookie was included in each position, including pitchers Jung Woo-ju (19), Kwon Min-gyu (19), Park Boo-sung (25), catcher Han Ji-yoon (19), infielder Lee Seung-hyun (23), and outfielder Lee Min-jae (21).
This is the largest number of rookies among the 10 teams. With Samsung and Lotte taking four, LG, KT and SSG taking three, Doosan taking two, and KIA taking one rookie, NC and Kiwoom will hold camp without rookies.
Jeong Woo-ju, Kwon Min-gyu, and Han Ji-yoon, who received the top three picks in the first to third rounds, were expected to join the team. Other teams also recruit top-ranked rookies to the camp to motivate them. Hanwha, however, also included two players in its first-tier camp who, along with Lee Min-jae, who was selected in the 11th round, did not receive a draft pick and entered as a nurturing player. It is quite unusual.
Park Boo-sung, a graduate of Dongui University, is a 186-centimeter-tall underhand pitcher with a messy tip on his cheek. Along with Um Sang-baek, who was recruited by the FA, Park was recognized for his scarcity as the only submarine in the Hanwha camp. Just watching the video alone attracted pitcher coach Yang Sang-moon. When he was a junior at Dongui University, he already completed his mandatory military service as he joined the military as an active duty.
Lee Seung-hyun, a right-handedness and left-handed infielder from Sungkyunkwan University, also got on board in a surprise move. Despite his small physique measuring 177 centimeters tall and weighing 77 kilograms, he was recognized for his fast feet and robust defense capability, which caught Kim's eye. He was the only rookie among those who joined the Miyazaki wrap-up camp in Japan last year and even joined the top-tier spring camp. His main position was shortstop in college, but he is expanding his position to second base in Hanwha.
Coach Kim Kyung-moon said after the rookie draft in September last year, "An early selection does not mean a success. A professional player is a place where players who come from below can work harder and succeed. A player who brings out his or her own through hidden and invisible efforts comes to the professional field and wins and becomes successful." Regardless of his order of nomination, he stressed that he will give a chance to a player who is desperate.
Almost all coaches say the same thing, but Kim is not a coach based solely on words. He has turned out to be star players who were not well known to anyone during the Doosan and NC periods. Kim Hyun-soo (LG) is a good example of the Doosan Bears. Although he was not selected in the 2006 draft, he has been using the first team as a starting lineup since 2007 to nurture him as a representative batter. Son Si-heon, who debuted as a coach in the latter years of Kim In-shik, was reborn as a regular shortstop under Kim Kyung-moon, and Lee Jong-wook, who came to Doosan as a nurturing player after being released from Hyundai, has also expressed his potential with earnestness. Choi Jae-hoon, Hanwha's main catcher, caught Kim's eye as soon as he joined Doosan in 2008 as a nurturing player and was selected to the first team spring camp.
In the NC Dinos, Kim Jin-sung (LG) and Won Jong-hyun (Kium), who joined after going through a tryout after being released from other teams, have been raised as key bullpens. Choi Geum-gang and Kim Joon-wan, who joined as nurturing players, also played a vital role as must-winners and key outfielders, respectively.
In addition to Yook Sung, lower-round designated players have also made stars. At Doosan, Yang Eui-ji and Oh Jae-won, the nominees for the 8th to 9th rounds, have grown with opportunities under coach Kim. At NC, Kwon Hee-dong, who was selected in the 9th round, has been playing as the main player so far.
Kim is good at motivating players. Even lower-ranked players or nurturing players do not pay attention if they show willingness and eagerness to do something. Moon Seung-jin, a 10th-round pitcher in 2021, and Kim Do-bin, a pitcher who joined the team as a nurturing player last year, are also joining the spring camp for the first time. This is the first year of the new stadium in Daejeon, and Kim hopes to send a message of hope to players who are silently working hard in the dark. If the hidden potential explodes in the process, Hanwha may have a surprise star like Kim Hyun-soo.