What is the intention of coach Lee Bum-ho

KIA, led by head coach Lee Bum-ho, will play at the 2024 KBO exhibition game from September 9. KIA will play against the Changwon NC Dinos on June 9-10, Daejeon Hanwha Eagles on June 11-12, take a day off, and will play against Doosan Bears in Jamsil on June 14-15, KT Wiz in Gwangju on June 16-17, and Samsung Lions in Gwangju on June 19-20.  먹튀검증

Having prepared for this season with the new head coach, Kia maintained a calm atmosphere and completed its first camp in Canberra, Australia. Afterwards, it moved to Okinawa, Japan, and conducted the second camp focusing on actual games. It had three wins and two losses in five practice matches, confirming achievements and tasks together.

Lee Bum-ho, who took the helm during the camp while preparing for the season as a batting coach, has completed some planning for the season. After the inauguration ceremony of the 11th coach at the "Kia Autoland Gwangju" auditorium in Seo-gu, Gwangju on Tuesday, Lee told reporters, "I only check first baseman, catcher, and backup players. I will check them little by little during the exhibition game, and consult with the coaching staff at the end before making a final decision."

On the day, manager Lee Bum-ho changed the roster of the first team. Pitchers Yoo Seung-cheol, infielders Jung Hae-won, Yoon Do-hyun and Byun Woo-hyuk were excluded, and infielders Hwang Dae-in and Kim Kyu-sung were called up. Jeong Hae-won and Yoon Do-hyun, who stood out in the spring camp, were also excluded from the roster.

Jung Hae-won and Yoon Do-hyun are promising infielders who joined Kia as the 22nd in the third round in 2023 and 15th in the second round in 2022, respectively. From a long-term perspective, they are essential players for the team. Notably, Yoon was named the MVP of the spring camp along with pitcher Park Jun-pyo, as he played hardball with a batting average of 0.462, two homers and three RBIs and a 1.616 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) in three games at practice matches.

Then, why were they excluded from the list? In the case of Yoon, his physical condition was a problem. "Due to pain in his left side, Yoon had no problem at the first screening, and he will undergo a double check-up at Sejong Sports' orthopedic surgery on August 8," said an official from Kia.

Coach Lee Bum-ho said, "Yoon Do-hyun is not in a good condition at the end of the camp, so I think he needs some time to check. It is said that there is nothing wrong, but it is more important to what extent a player's ability can be utilized during the season than the opening of the regular season. First of all, he is treated in the second division."

Jung did not leave the team due to injury or other reasons. "I think young infielders have quite high levels of skills compared to their age, and what kind of synergy effect they can generate when competing with old players is important," Lee said. "Since there may not be much time left, I am worried about how much they will be able to grow. Since there are so many good players in the infield, I think we need to check what they will appreciate more through exhibition games."

The coaching staff is committed to giving as many chances as possible to the players as they have to solve the last puzzle piece in 10 exhibition games. This is why they called up Hwang Dae-in, who was not included in the Korean Professional Baseball League's camp list.

Hwang Dae-in, who hit 14 home runs in 2022, finished the 2023 season with a poor performance of 37 hits in 174 times at bat in 60 games, 0.213 with five homers, 26 RBIs, 19 runs scored with an OPS of 0.618. He could not avoid a sharp blow in salary negotiations, and 50 million won (-38.5%) was cut from 130 million won last year, to 80 million won. He is the largest cut-off among pitchers and fielders.

Hwang Dae-in is preparing for the season with a different mindset from previous years, and his coach is also very aware of this. "Dae-in has played so many games as a first baseman and he liked how he played in the second division. I want to see him play that role. I want to make a judgment on whether he is aggressive or not," Lee said.

Kia has yet to complete its search for a first baseman in the main game, which was one of its camp assignments for this year. Three players, including Hwang Dae-in, Lee Woo-sung and Byun Woo-hyuk, are competing. "If there is no particular problem with defense, it is right that (Lee) Woo-sung is the first in the team," Lee said. "Lee has not played as many first basemen, and it is his first time playing at an exhibition game at his home stadium, so I want to check what kind of plays he plays. (Byeon) Woo-hyuk seems to be trying to fill in his shortcomings little by little, so he tries to recruit players in turns," Lee said.