“The distribution is good. It exceeds expectations.”
Lotte Giants participated in this year’s spring camp in Guam with two rookies. First-rounder Kim Min-seok, who was called ‘Little Lee Jeong-hoo’ from Whimoon High School, was already dispatched to Geelong Korea of the Australian Professional Baseball (ABL) and accumulated experience comparable to that of the first team. Participating in the spring camp was a natural step. And one rookie from the pitching team participated. Lee Tae-yeon, a lefty from Chungam High School, who was nominated in the 6th round of this year’s rookie draft, was the main character.
With the recommendation of the front desk, Lee Tae-yeon took the opportunity to participate in the spring camp this year. Taeyeon Lee, who is quietly playing the role of the youngest at the Dededo Sports Complex in Guam, still seems a bit unfamiliar with her professional life. This is the moment when everything is still amazing.
However, Lee Tae-yeon silently sharpened his sword and showed off his true face. He pitched in the bullpen on Day 1 and Day 2 of camp and achieved results that exceeded his expectations. Pitching coach Bae Young-soo said, “I wanted to get a recommendation from at least one person in the club, but Lee Tae-yeon was recommended. So he was brought to the camp,” he said. However, his pitching form is neat and decent, and both pitching and distribution are good. Like it. He also seems to be in good shape. He expressed satisfaction by explaining that he is the same style as Kim Jae-woong of Kiwoom.
Lee Tae-yeon led the mound at Chungam High School last year together with Yoon Young-cheol, who was nominated by the KIA as the second overall pick in the first round of this year’s draft. He recorded 1 win and 2 losses with an earned run average of 4.03 in 11 games and 28⅔ innings. He showed off his pitch and control at the same time, striking out 33 times and only giving up 6 walks. However, the results such as the average ERA were somewhat poor. However, in his sophomore year, he received better evaluations for his ability as good as Yoon Young-chul. He posted a record of 1.88 earned run average with 1 loss in 14 games and 24⅓ innings without a win. It can be seen that the regret of the third grade season led to the result of not being nominated in a higher order.
Anyway, Lotte was lucky. Compared to Yoon Young-chul, he snatched a left-handed pitcher who received less attention but was equally evaluated in the late draft order. In a situation where there is a shortage of left-handed pitchers, if a rookie stands out, the problem of left-handed pitching can be naturally resolved. Already, Lotte had to send left-hander Kim Yoo-young as a compensation player while recruiting catcher Yoo Kang-nam. And Kang Ri-ho (formerly known as Kang Yun-goo), who rejected the Lotte team’s disapproval and declared free agency, can no longer be with Lotte. 먹튀검증
On the 3rd, Kang Ri-ho said through an Instagram live broadcast, “Director Seong Min-gyu said, ‘I could be a lost child’, but I played baseball thinking of free agents and said that I would quit baseball if I became a lost child.” “One-point relief pitcher It was embarrassing to myself to be replaced without being able to do my part. I shed tears when I thought about whether it was right to play baseball like this. He explained his FA declaration, saying, “I applied for FA because I judged that my position in Lotte would be narrowed.”
Lotte plans to offer Kang Ri-ho nothing more or less than the one-year contract previously presented. The left-handed bullpen pitcher position given to Kang Ri-ho will now be passed on to another pitcher, and Lee Tae-yeon is rapidly emerging as the candidate. Coach Bae said, “I asked Lee Tae-yeon what position he wanted, and he boldly replied, ‘I want to be a starting pitcher’. So he told me to prepare for selection first,” he said with a smile at the rookie’s ambitious distribution.
Will Lee Tae-yeon really emerge as a new dark horse for the Lotte bullpen?