There really isn't a senior like this until you retire...Choi Hyung-woo's special advice: Will Lee Woo-sung, a rising star, bloom
Jan 01, 2025
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KIA Tigers' Lee Woo-sung (31) came to Gwangju Kia Champions Field with his senior Choi Hyung-woo (42) this winter and turned his bat around. During this season, Choi Hyung-woo watched Lee Woo-sung's hit and gave him blood and flesh advice one by one, not stopping here, but while training together, he listened to and resolved Lee Woo-sung's concerns. In Choi Hyung-woo's view, Lee Woo-sung is a big gun that can easily hit a double-digit home run, but he seems to have taken care of his junior in wonder because he has never hit 10 home runs in the season since he came to the professional league in 2013.
In a phone call with Sports Chosun, Lee Woo-sung said, `My senior always tells me during the season because I don't have much long balls compared to my physique (1m82, weight 95kg). For example, 'I wish I could let go of one hand after hitting the bat. The ball needs to float a little more. A lot of people say, 'You have to give a good spin (rotation) to the bottom of the ball. If you look at my performance, I haven't hit a double-digit home run yet. My senior felt sorry for me in that regard, so he said he would help me hit the base of the ball a lot. My senior told me that I should practice floating the ball because I have a very low launch angle.
Lee Woo-sung continued "When I hit, the left wall tends to collapse quickly. My senior told me while working out together at Champions Field in the winter that he stressed that 'the left wall doesn't collapse until you retire from baseball.'"
Choi Hyung-woo does not stop at giving advice, but even supports Lee Woo-sung's training. Choi will soon leave for Guam for personal training, and he suggested to Lee Woo-sung earlier that he join him. In addition to Lee Woo-sung, KIA outfielder Choi Won-joon (28) and Samsung Lions infielder Ryu Ji-hyuk (31) will also join. Choi Hyung-woo supports both the stay and training expenses of junior players. Lee Woo-sung is scheduled to leave for Guam on the 4th.
Lee Woosung "Hyungwoo said, "Since COVID-19 has been resolved even before the start of the last season, I'm going to go to Guam for training in the new year, and he asked if I would like to go with him. It's such a good opportunity, so I told you that I'm definitely going. I think I'll probably go to Guam and do weight training, catch ball, outfield defense, infield defense, and batting"I thanked my senior for supporting the training.
Choi Hyung-woo and Lee Woo-sung were not comfortable seniors and juniors from the beginning because they were 11 years apart in age. Choi Hyung-woo opened his heart well to his juniors first, so Lee Woo-sung naturally followed well.
Lee Woo-sung came to KIA in 2019 and thanked his senior for helping him by his side every year. Of course, at first, the senior was shy, and I was very shy with each other. In my life, my senior always loved not only me but also all my juniors. I think it is cool because there are many things to respect not only baseball but also as a senior in life. All I can say is thank you every time. It's very reassuring."
Apart from Guam training, I'm going to learn to hit Choi more actively. Lee Woo-sung said, `I did a lot of batting training with Hyung-woo at Champions Field in the winter. Now that I'm closer to my senior, I can ask more comfortably, so I'm going to go to Guam this time and ask a lot of questions. You said you'd help me, so I'll ask you a lot" laughed with enthusiasm.
Lee Woo-sung began to get a chance to become the main player in KIA last year. He hit .301 (107 hits in 355 at-bats) for the season in 2023, and last year he hit .288 (115 hits in 399 at-bats), nine homers, 54 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.762 in 112 games. Even if there had been no gap for more than a month due to a hamstring injury last year, it could have expected a little better performance.
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Last year was the year when Lee Woo-sung played in the first team for the first time and lifted the trophy. In 2015 and 2016, when Lee Woo-sung was with the Doosan Bears, he had to watch the team win from a distance. I didn't have a chance to be in the first team because I just finished my military service in Sangmu and raised expectations as a promising right-handed slugger in the second team.
Lee Woo-sung said, "I really cried after winning the championship. At the same time, I won the championship, but I didn't play an active role. I thought, "This is what I want to win." But I have a goal that I want to be the main player in the next championship," he said emphatically.
Lee Woo-sung does not know now which position he will play between first baseman and outfielder next season. KIA broke up with existing foreign batter Socrates Brito (33) and recruited new foreign batter Patrick Wisdom (34), causing a change in the internal and external positions. There was a vacancy in the outfield where Socrates was absent, and as Wisdom joined as the first baseman, Lee Woo-sung and Byun Woo-hyuk (25) became less likely to stand. In order to survive, we need to be prepared to play both as an outfielder and as a backup first baseman.
Lee Woo-sung said, "Socrates was out of the outfield, and a huge player (Wizdom) came to our team. I definitely don't have my seat, so I think I'll have to prepare both. I haven't heard anything about the position in particular, but I think I'm a player who needs to prepare for both. I will play both infield and outfield defense even when I go to Guam."
Lee Woo-sung hit his ninth home run of the season against Suwon kt Wiz on September 16 last year and dreamed of achieving his first 10 home runs in his career. However, he failed to add more home runs in the remaining eight games and had to swallow his disappointment.
Lee Woo-sung was greedy to hit nine home runs and 10 at the end of the season. But when I was greedy, the balance collapsed a lot. So I will aim to hit .300 in the new year. I want to hit a double-digit home run, but I won't be greedy"I vowed.
"It was really good when I started the Korean Series, but I wasn't a player who could take responsibility for all nine innings of defense or batting. So the goal is to become a player who can take responsibility for nine more innings that can give trust to coaches, coaches, and players. We will also do our best to help the Tigers win their second consecutive game"I'm determined.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
