'5 billion FA' Roh Jin-hyuk starts shortstop for the first time in 114 days'Side pain'Park Seung-wook's condition is

Aug 20, 2024

A game between the Doosan Bears and the Lotte Giants at Jamsil Stadium on the 4th. Lotte third baseman Roh Jin-hyuk is defending. Jamsil = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2024.07.04/

The momentum is good in August. The smell of autumn is getting stronger. However, the physical limitations of young players are also noticeable.

The Lotte Giants will play the first game of the week series against the KIA Tigers at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 20th.

On this day, Lotte will play in the lineup of Hwang Sung-bin (center fielder), Yoon Dong-hee (right wing), Son Ho-young (third base), Reyes (left wing), Na Seung-yeop (first base), Jeon Joon-woo (designated hitter), Ko Seung-min (second base), Noh Jin-hyuk (striker) and Son Sung-bin (catcher). The starter is Kim Jin-wook.

Roh Jin-hyuk's name, who was announced as the eighth batter and shortstop, stands out. For Noh Jin-hyuk, it is his first shortstop start in 114 days since the match against Changwon NC Dinos on April 27.

Even during the NC period, Noh Jin-hyuk was not a player with shrewd movements. Instead, even though he had a tall height as an infielder, he had a good sense of stability in handling head-to-head hitting and was evaluated as a player with excellent sense of selecting defensive positions based on experience. Above all, the slugging power of hitting up to 20 home runs in a season rather than defense was outstanding.

The match between SSG and Lotte at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 31st. Lotte Noh Jin-hyuk, who is training infield defense. Incheon = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2024.07.31/

However, when he moved to Lotte as an FA, Noh Jin-hyuk was already 34 years old. This is why fans expressed concern over a considerable amount of 5 billion won for four years.

And the worry unfortunately hit the nail on the head. Noh Jin-hyuk showed good performance as a clutch heater, but he hit .257 with four home runs, 51 RBIs, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.724.

In the end, this year, he fell into the worst slump of his life, hovering around Futures for a long time. Although he appeared little by little since July, he mainly devoted himself to third base and first base.

Roh Jin-hyuk, who was on first base, moved to shortstop as the main shortstop Park Seung-wook was absent ahead of the top of the fifth inning against the Kiwoom Heroes in Busan on the 18th. At that time, Park Seung-wook was replaced after complaining of side pain during the defense process.

Lotte and Kiwoom at Gocheok Sky Dome on the 23rd, and Lotte Park Seung-wook hitting an RBI timely hit in the top of the sixth inning with no outs and runners on the second and third bases. Gocheok = Reporter's book@sportschosun.com/2024.06.23/

"Park Seung-wook cannot play until today," Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung said during the game. I have to see the situation tomorrow, too," he replied. What I didn't exclude from the entry for now means I can play within this week.

Another shortstop agent is rookie Lee Ho-joon. Lee Hak-joo in Futures is injured. The head coach decided to trust Noh Jin-hyuk for now.

lunarfly@sportschosun.com

'5 billion FA' Roh Jin-hyuk starts shortstop for the first time in 114 days'Side pain'Park Seung-wook's condition is

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