This is why 19-year-old unknown rookie spotlight and Roberts admiration were possible...Why would KBO's attempt be nice
Jan 07, 2025
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It was March last year. Kim Taek-yeon (20, Doosan Bears), the second-ranked rookie right-hander in the first round of 2024, was called by the national team even before making his professional debut. The Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres will play the opening series of the regular season in Seoul, and KBO has called up the team Korea' because the two teams need warm-up opponents before the showdown. Team Korea is composed of young prospects who are likely to lead Korean baseball in the future, including Kim Taek-yeon.
Kim Taek-yeon, a 19-year-old unknown pitcher at the time, turned not only South Korea but also the U.S. media upside down. Kim Taek-yeon pitched a bold pitch in which he struck out both the Dodgers' main batters Teoscar Hernandez (33) and James Outman (28) in relief in a warm-up match with the Dodgers. Hernandez is a big shot this winter, boasting 33 home runs last season and 192 big league home runsHe is a top hitter who succeeded in signing a three-year, 66 million-dollar contract with Juss.
The U.S. media also focused more on Dodgers manager Dave Roberts when he picked Kim Taek-yeon as an impressive player after the game. Roberts said, `The pitcher (Kim Taek-yeon) who took the mound in the sixth inning is memorable. Outman said 'His ball was huge and his speed was 91 miles (146 kilometers), but it looked like 95-96 miles (153-154 kilometers). I want to say he's a player with great shoulders"I'm impressed.
As a player highlighted by domestic and foreign media, Kim Taek-yeon quickly removed the unknown label. In his debut season, he established himself as Doosan's closing pitcher and won the Rookie of the Year award with three wins, 19 saves, four holds, 65 innings, and a 2.08 ERA in 60 games.
Another example is infielder Kim Hye-sung (26), who succeeded in entering the Major League on the 4th (Korea time). Kim Hye-sung is close to the deadline for postingIt attracted attention by signing a maximum of 22 million dollars (about 32.1 billion won) for 3+2 years with Jus.
The U.S. media found a link between Kim Hye-sung and the Dodgers in the Seoul Series. At the time, Roberts said, `In Korean baseball, second baseman (Kim Hye-sung) stood out. He praised the team for its good batting and good movement when defending.
Journalist John Morosi of the MLB Network also told the story that Roberts said that our scout liked the second baseman (Kim Hye-sung).
The Dodgers may not have evaluated all of Kim Hye-sung in one game of the Seoul Series, but it can be an opportunity to pay more attention to the player.
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President Huh is preparing for a national team exchange match as part of the
KBO held the Seoul Series warm-up match, the warm-up match between Cuba and the national team, and the Ulsan-KBO Polyg last year. Ulsan-KBO Polyg was an educational league featuring five Korean teams, including the 3rd division of the Japanese Softbank Hawks, the Mexican League Alliance Team (Team LMB), Jiangsu Hughes, China, the Cuban national team, the LG Twins, the Goyang Heroes (Kium 2nd division), the NC Dinos, the Lotte Giants, and the independent league All-Star.
Governor Heo said, "We will continue to promote the discovery of future baseball talents and the revitalization of the global baseball ecosystem by operating the KBO International Education League, which began last year, to improve the performance of promising players and strengthen our network with overseas baseball secretariat." expressed his aspirations.
Recently, Korean baseball has often been surprised by the higher-than-expected wall of world baseball at major international competitions such as WBC and Premier 12. As President Huh plans, more opportunities to interact with other national team players in addition to international competitions will certainly help broaden the players' perspectives.
Last year's KBO MVP Kim Do-young (21) said he wants to check whether he works on the world stage as he goes to the 2024 Premier 12 tournament. Kim Do-young hit .412 with three home runs, 10 RBIs and an OPS of 1.503 in five games of the tournament, but there were also a lot of homework on what to do in the future", he expressed his desire to develop further. KBO is reportedly continuing to make various attempts to give good impetus to the players, as in Kim Do-young's case, such as pushing for an exchange match with Japan, which is currently ranked No. 1 in the world.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
