Kang In-kwon, the starting center fielder for 3G in a row, still can't lose his 13th year as a founding member

Kang In-kwon, manager of the NC Dinos, expressed his hope last season that Kim Sung-wook (30) would have his potential. "I thought Kim would have gotten better last year. But he didn't look very good," Kang said, expressing regret by saying, "He needs to take a step up. He has a lot of good abilities…."  안전놀이터

He was the founding member of NC's coaching staff, Kang In-kwon, and Kim Sung-wook was also a founding member. Kim Sung-wook, who joined NC in the third round of the 2012 rookie draft at No. 32, was in the spotlight as a "tool guy" with fast feet, long balls and strong shoulders. He was also a member of the original Masan Idol along with Na Sung-bum and Park Min-woo.

Since Kim Kyung-moon was the first coach, Kim Sung-wook has always been a talented player with high expectations, and there were times when he was selected as a starting player. From 2015 to 2017, he played in more than 124 games in three consecutive years. In 2016, he seemed to display his potential with a batting average of 265 with 15 homers and 51 RBIs in 130 games. In 2017, he seemed to falter with a batting average of 257 with six homers and 31 RBIs in 124 games (76 hits in 308 at bats), but in 2018, he had a batting average of 266 (84 hits in 323 at bats) with 13 homers and 45 RBIs and 11 bases with OPS.753.

In the end, Kim failed to advance to another level. He faltered without fully realizing his potential. He settled his military service when he joined the Korean Armed Forces Sports Unit after the end of the 2020 season. Expectations were high for reserve Kim Sung-wook. Even when Park Gun-woo and Son Ah-seop were holding out, he believed in Kim's talent.

He had many chances of recording 204 at-bats in 93 games during the regular season last year, but failed to take advantage of them. He posted a batting average of 223 with 40 at-bats for six homers and 16 RBIs in OPS.683.

In the postseason, he hit a two-run shot that heralded the miracle of autumn in the first semi-playoff match against SSG Landers. It was a shot that implied Kim's ability.

He has failed to secure his position and has become a player of 13 years. He is a shameful age to call himself a promising player. Nevertheless, Kang seems to have failed to let go of Kim Seong-wook. At this year's Arizona Spring Camp, Kim is playing with key players.

All foreign players, including Aaron Altheir, Nick Martini, and Jason Martin, picked him as outfielders. Matt Davidson was recruited as a new foreign player this year to strengthen his slugging ability and strengthen his first base.

Park Gun-woo will play right field and Kwon Hee-dong, who showed off his outfield performance last year, is expected to play left field. Captain Son Ah-seop is expected to go to designated hitter and corner outfielder. One center fielder remains. Kim Sung-wook is currently filling this position.

Kim Sung-wook has been included in the main lineup since the first Cheongbaek match held on the 22nd (Korea time). He played as the seventh center fielder of the Baek team on the 22nd. The lineup for the Baek team was Park Min-woo (second baseman), Kwon Hee-dong (left fielder), Son Ah-seop (designated hitter), Davison (first baseman), Shin Jae-hwan (right fielder), Seo Ho-cheol (third baseman), Kim Sung-wook (middle fielder), Park Se-hyuk (catcher), and Kim Ju-won (striker). All of them were regular members last year. On the day, Kim Sung-wook had one hit in two at-bats.

The same happened in the second Cheong-baek match held on Sunday. As a member of the Chung team, he played center field sixth. The starting lineup for the Chung team was Park Min-woo (second baseman), Kwon Hee-dong (left fielder), Son Ah-seop (designated hitter), Davidson (first baseman), Park Gun-woo (right fielder), Kim Sung-wook (middle fielder), Seo Ho-cheol (third baseman), Kim Hyung-joon (puncher) and Kim Ju-won (striker). It was no different from the lineup for the regular season. On the day, Kim Seong-wook had one hit and one RBI from two times at bat.

In the first external practice match against LG on Thursday last week, Kim was listed as the fifth center fielder. The starting lineup was comprised of Park Min-woo (second baseman), Kwon Hee-dong (left fielder), Son A-seop (designated hitter), Park Gun-woo (right fielder), Kim Sung-wook (middle fielder), Seo Ho-cheol (third baseman), Do Tae-hoon (first baseman), Kim Hyung-joon (puncher) and Kim Ju-won (shortstop). Kim failed to add another hit on the day, but garnered two walks to give strength to his team's on-base hit. He appeared as a leadoff hitter in the bottom of the seventh inning when his team was facing off 2-2, and walked to get on base and stepped on home when Do Tae-hoon made a timely hit.

Ahead of the practice game against LG, Kang In-kwon, the coach, said, "We are currently in various experiments for the lineup as we are planning to hit the batter's box. Due to the changed regulations, we are planning a lineup that allows fast baseball. We will continue to watch the lineup through games depending on the players' conditions." It can be said that it is a critical process to maximize the utilization of Kim Sung-wook, who is equipped with speed and athletic ability. In other words, Kim had another chance. The only thing left is for Kim to take advantage of this opportunity that he has come back to.

Meanwhile, NC lost to LG 4-9 in its first external practice match on the day. Seo Ho-cheol had two hits and an RBI in three at-bats, while Do Tae-hoon, Son Ah-seop, Kwon Hee-dong, Park Min-woo, and Park Geon-woo all had one hit.

Kim Si-hoon, who is competing to become a starting pitcher, allowed three hits and one run in two innings. He posted his maximum speed of 141 kilometers. Lee Joon-ho pitched two innings without allowing any runs, and Kim Tae-hyun and Han Jae-seung pitched one inning without allowing any runs.

However, Song Myung-ki, who came up in the eighth inning, collapsed with four hits (one homer) and three runs in one inning, and Lee Yong-joon, who came up in the ninth inning, also left a disappointment with four hits and four runs in one inning.