There is a clear misunderstanding, but despite the 12-year career break and blood ties, the appointment of a second-tier coach, why?

Dec 31, 2024

Park Jung-tae, when he was a Lotte coach. Sports Chosun DB

SSG Landers' second-tier coach, who was vacant, has finally been filled. But he's a rather unexpected person.

The SSG club officially announced on December 31, the last day of 2024, that it appointed former commentator Park Jung-tae as the coach of the Futures Team (second division).

It's a bit of a surprise. Head coach Park Jung-tae, known as the 'Akbari'Tank'Icons of Grit', is a former Lotte Giants legend. There was no contact with SSG and Incheon baseball. Among the many candidates of SSG, who have been looking for a new second-tier coach for more than two months, it is even out of the blue to appoint Park Jung-tae.

In addition to the announcement of the appointment of the coach, the SSG club also provided an additional explanation. Prior to the appointment of Future's coach, the club established a leadership image that fits the direction of the club's development and set the highest standards for professional development, such as leaders, skills, psychology, mental, physical strength, and education, and professional ability to provide fostering solutions according to the characteristics of each player. Based on this, the candidate group was listed, and Park Jung-tae, a former commentator, was appointed as the head coach of Futures after a career review and a reputation check, and an in-depth interview", he explained.

However, there is no denying that it is a remarkable seniority. The gap was particularly long. Coach Park Jung-tae only coached at Lotte Giants after retirement, and after leaving the team, the hitting coach of the WBC (World Baseball Classic) national team in 2013 was his last on-site experience.

I was away from the scene for nearly 12 years. It is rare for a leader who has had such a long gap to suddenly take on the heavy responsibility of being a second-tier coach, the core and conductor of fostering. That's why the SSG club explained "more thoroughly verified".

A club official noted that he had been working on youth baseball during his time away from the field, and that he had been working on various tasks such as psychological counseling and education for players. "I didn't think there was anything wrong with the understanding of the players, their history, or their career," he said. "I also interviewed officials during the verification process, and it was well received. We trained our team's squad last year and this year, and good reviews came out at the time. I judged that I've been preparing well for the past 12 years", he explained.

In addition, there has been a controversy over unsavory assault related to drinking since leaving the scene. The club even confirmed the trial records in this part" he said.

Since there is a blood relationship here, there is no choice but to be misunderstood. Manager Park Jung-tae is a former major leaguer and uncle of Choo Shin-soo, who recently retired from SSG. The relationship between the two is already well known. Furthermore, Choo Shin-soo recently took over as an assistant to the owner and general manager of the development. Since then, his uncle has been appointed as the manager of the second division, the club has explained that the timing of the announcement was only mixed and that assistant Choo Shin-soo was not involved, but it seems to be misunderstood. It's something you have to bear.

A practice game between the Guangzhou Asian Games national team and the Lotte Giants was held at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 3rd. Before the game, national team coach Choo Shin-soo (left) and second-tier coach Park Jung-tae are greeting each other happily. Manager Park Jung-tae was Choo Shin-soo's uncle, which made Choo Shin-soo dream of becoming a baseball player. Sports Chosun DB

It is true that SSG had difficulty in appointing a second-tier coach. I've gone through a number of candidates. A baseball player, who was first considered a strong candidate, was canceled, and as the CEO was replaced later, there were many things internally. In the end, coach A seemed likely to be appointed among the current coaches of other teams, but this was also canceled.

In this process, coach Park Jung-tae, who was mentioned as a candidate in the past, was selected as a final candidate. SSG's announcement of the appointment of a second-tier coach was also delayed due to recent accidents related to drinking at other clubs. However, the announcement came at a time when it could no longer be delayed at a time when New Year's work had to start on January 2nd. It is said that the club has been closely verified, but in other words, it may be right to say that it has gone through the process of finding suitability while being a final candidate.

SSG finished the composition of the Futures team's coaching staff with the appointment of head coach Park Jung-tae. Ryu Taek-hyun, pitching coach, bullpen coach Lee Young-wook, hitting coach Lee Myung-ki, defensive coach Masato Watanabe, battery coach Fumihiro Suzuki and operational running coach Na Kyung-min will meet the Futures team. General manager Jeong Jin-sik, field coach Lee Yoon-jae of Dubulwa, pitching coach Bae Young-soo and rehabilitation coach Yoon Yo-seop will be in charge of the remaining troops.

The decision has already been made. It is obvious that it will be misunderstood, but the team is the one who made the decision in the end. Will coach Park Jung-tae be able to show a good fit for SSG's 12-year absence and SSG's development plan. Showing as a final outcome is the best way to dispel all these unnecessary misunderstandings.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.