Jeong Soo-bin (32, Dusan Bears) signed a six-year, $5.6 billion free agent contract after the 2020 season to stay with his home team. His signing was met with controversy for being overpaid, and he underperformed in his first two seasons. His batting average was only 0.259 and his on-base percentage was only 0.324 over the two years. It was hard for him to secure a starting spot, let alone a paycheck.
This season is different. New Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop has steadfastly kept Jung Soo-bin in the lineup, and he has performed consistently. He was considered a slow starter until last year, but after a strong April (0.402 OPS) and a sluggish May (0.198 OPS), he’s been hitting over .300 every month since June.
He’s been performing better in the recent heat wave. Against the Hanwha Eagles in Daejeon on April 2, he hit a game-winning single in the 12th inning, and he didn’t lose his focus after the hit. He stole second base immediately after the hit, which led to the game-winning run. Against KT on Friday, which ended the team’s two-game losing streak, he went 3-for-5 with a home run, one RBI, and one run scored in a 7-4 victory.
“Jung Soo-bin is playing a very important role this year,” said manager Lee Seung-yeop. “I had a lot of expectations for him, even though he was sluggish last year. But I didn’t expect him to do this much,” Lee said. “He’s very fast and has good contact and defense. He doesn’t get injured very often, so I thought he would have a really good impact on the team just by hitting,” Lee said, adding, “He’s a much better player than I thought. He is dedicated to the team. He defends and plays hard.”스포츠토토
Doosan is tied for third place with a 0.522 winning percentage after five days. A postseason (PS) berth is looking increasingly likely. As the autumn winds begin to blow, the bat of “Autumn Subin” heats up even more. He has a 0.332 batting average since September, when the race is at its peak.
He also has a career PS batting average of 0.296. In 2015, he won the KS MVP (Most Valuable Player) award with a 0.353 PS batting average and a 0.571 batting average in the Korean Series (KS). From 2019 to 2021, he is also a guaranteed fall check, having posted a PS batting average of more than 3 percent for three consecutive years. Coach Lee Seung-yeop said, “Jung Soo-bin needs to do more in the future. He’s always been strong in the fall. I will look forward to seeing him in August and September.”