"The players are more motivated" There is no eternal second team, prospects burn down

Nov 13, 2024

SSG players who participated in the final camp. Photo =SSG Landers

SSG athletes in training. Photo =SSG Landers

[Kagoshima (Japan) = Sports Chosun reporter Nayuri]"The first team coach comes and sees it himself, and the players are more motivated because there are coaches."

SSG Landers is in full swing at the Sports Park in Satsumasendai City, Kagoshima, Japan. The list of participating players has been set up around prospects, including rookie players who played in the first division this year, including Ko Myung-joon, Park Ji-hwan, and Jung Joon-jae.

As players in their 20s are at the center, catcher Shin Bum-soo (26), who was born in 1998, is the best member of the camp. Among the 2024 rookies, Park Ji-hwan, Jung Joon-jae, Lee Seung-min, Park Ki-ho, Choi Hyun-suk, Jung Hyun-seung, Park Sung-bin, and Baek Jun-seo participated, and among the 2025 rookies who received the nomination this year, Shin Ji-hwan, Cheon Beom-seok, Lee Yul-ye and Lee Won-jun entered the professional world with their seniors.

It's the closing camp, but the training schedule is quite tight. First of all, the day continues with a one-day break from training on the 4th, and the day continues almost without a break from morning exercise to night training. Most of the players who participated in the closing camp are key prospects with the future of the SSG club at stake. So this time, we are making sure to raise our skills with an intensive schedule and prepare for next year's spring camp.

The composition of the coaching staff is also mixed with the first and second groups. Lee Sung-yong, the head coach of the first team, is in charge of the overall training framework, and Son Si-heon, the head coach of the second team, who will move to the first team defensive coach next year, is in charge. In addition, newly joined pitching coach Kyung Heon-ho, battery coach Yuji Serizawa and first-team batting coach Kang Byung-sik are leading the players. Coach Ryu Taek-hyun, who coached pitchers on this year's Futures team, Operation First Team Operation-Bbase Coach Yoon Jae-gook, and new coach Lee Myung-ki, who transformed into a leader after retiring as a player.

사진=SSG 랜더스

As many first-team coaches participate, it is a positive stimulus for promising players. It was a new motivation for the Futures team that rookie players got the opportunity to play and take the mound in the first team this year. An official from the Futures team said, `This year, there have been a lot of major tours for second-tier players, and call-ups for the first team have been made frequently, which clearly motivates the players every time they go to the first team. His eyes changed" he said.

The atmosphere of this wrap-up camp is the same. Coach Lee Sung-yong is watching the players' training, and coaches who will take over major positions in the first division next year are directly guiding the players who played in the second division this year, creating a more motivated atmosphere. The players said they were having fun even with the tight training schedule. Lee Yul-ye, a rookie in the first round, drew praise from his coaches and seniors with his energetic energy that was not like a high school student.

Choo Shin-soo, who was the captain of this year's squad, retired and told his juniors that `I hope there is no place for him forever.' I need to think that someone can take my place at any time," he said.

Just as there is no eternal mainstay, there is no eternal second army. This closing camp is a big stimulus for SSG's promising players.

youll@sportschosun.com