Ha Joo-seok has no thoughts at all. KT, Yoon Jun-hyuk, Kwon Dong-jin are also busy raising promising players

Dec 30, 2024

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Yun Junhyuk and Kwon Dongjin...

KT Wiz faced upheaval in the stove league. Shim Woo-joon and Um Sang-baek lost in the FA market. Both left for the Hanwha Eagles as if they had promised.

Doosan Bears franchise star Huh Kyung-min was urgently recruited for 4 billion won, but KT manager Lee Kang-chul regretted Shim Woo-joon's absence. This is because the batters with mobility that can steal bases have disappeared among shortstop and slow-witted corps with a wide range of defense.

Right now, veteran Kim Sang-soo can ease the worry about the main shortstop. However, Kim Sang-soo's defense range is getting narrower, and he needs to prepare for the future. In addition, when Kim Sang-soo is injured or exhausted, he needs a backup.

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Therefore, the possibility of Ha Joo-seok, another shortstop in the FA market, going to KT was mentioned. It was said that Ha Joo-seok is in grade B, so compensation has occurred, and sign-and-trade work may be taking place behind the scenes, even if it is not a transfer to the FA. When selecting compensation players for Shim Woo-joon and Um Sang-baek, coach Lee said, `If Ha Joo-seok had not applied for FA and was on the list other than protected players, he would have considered naming compensation players.'

So what is the current situation. It has been confirmed that KT has already completed the formation of its squad for the 2025 season. In other words, no matter what card comes, Ha Joo-seok's signature and trade will not take place.

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In the background, there is a young infielder duo that KT has to raise. It's Yoon Jun-hyuk and Kwon Dong-jin. Yoon Jun-hyuk, who was selected in the second fourth round in 2020, has shown tremendous growth in the Futures League this year after completing his military service, catching Lee's eyes. Coach Lee is also a prospect who has been used as a starter in the second half of the season amid the evaluation that both bat and defense are highly likely to develop. Just in time, Kim Sang-soo had a chance to get a finger injury, and he ended the season with the bad luck of getting a finger fracture while receiving a puncture. However, coach Lee gives a high score in defensive stability, and he is still thinking of Yoon Jun-hyuk as the shortstop after Kim Sang-soo. Since joining, he has shown interest in his strong shoulders.

Kwon Dong-jin is also a healthy infield resource, having been discharged from Sangmu this year. While Yoon Joon-hyuk was unable to join the Wakayama wrap-up camp in Japan due to injury, Kwon Dong-jin played a huge amount of training under coach Lee's watch. I'm sure I got a plus score.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.