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| Yoo Kang-nam for the interview. Reporter Kim Young-rok |
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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[Tainan (Taiwan) = Reporter Kim Young-rok of Sports Chosun] The appearance of the 8 billion catcher has completely changed. I lost weight as much as I felt responsible for filling my chest.
Lotte Giants Yoo Kang-nam (33) finally regained the visuals of his old days 'Jamsil Kim Soo-hyun'. The face line has changed enough to look slimmer by losing 13kg.
Yoo Kang-nam's physical condition, which I met in Tainan, was not yet complete. Still, as long as he has completed knee meniscus surgery, which was a chronic disease, he is preparing for the season healthily for the first time in a long time. Above all, he is full of enthusiasm to clean up the sluggishness of the past two years under the title of `8 billion catchers.'
In the Blue and White match against the Futures team on the 16th, he also played as a designated hitter and reported a revival by scoring two hits and two RBIs in five at-bats. He is still cautious about playing as a catcher. Yoo Kang-nam said, `Training can do all kinds of sports, but catchers have to be careful with their knees because they do a lot of sitting down training"Now, we are gradually increasing the intensity..." he explained.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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Thanks to coming to Taiwan a week earlier as a rehabilitation group with Choi Joon-yong and Ko Seung-min, the period of stay exceeded a month. Coincidentally, all three catchers, pitchers, and infielders have different positions.
However, the two agreed, "(Yoo) Gangnam took care of me like a mother." Yoo Kang-nam said, "I bought him some food. I think he took good care of it."After smiling awkwardly, he added, `Because we have to unite well as a team.'
Manager Kim Tae-hyung has repeatedly praised Yoo Kang-nam's pitching lead and stability. He was the main catcher again this year. It is explained that there is still a difference in ability as a catcher based on experience from young catchers such as Information Geun and Son Sung-bin.
He was out for the season after undergoing surgery in July last year. Since then, Lotte has failed to overcome its sluggishness and failed to take on the challenge of autumn baseball for seven consecutive years. Yoo Kang-nam said "It was a time to reflect on myself," he said, showing his inner feelings full of regret and frustration.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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"I was really upset. In the future, I want to play as a player so as not to get sick as much as possible. In order to do that, I thought losing weight was the top priority. "Both body and mind are firmly prepared for this season."
There are not a few players who say they went on a diet in the offseason, but it is rare to see a player who is as obvious as Yoo Kang-nam. This is why I feel the weight of 13kg.
Yoo Kang-nam is about 5 to 6 years old, similar to or less than his weight in his mid-20s. I'll try to maintain it in the future," he said, holding himself together.
When asked about the most difficult thing in reality, the answer came back "watching my team's baseball at home"." "What happened anyway, I have more time than anyone else to prepare for the next season." was a time when I focused only on rehabilitation and training with a mindset. In the end, the aftermath left after surgery has no choice but to be covered by strengthening muscle strength.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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During his time with the LG Twins, Yoo Kang-nam was a batter who expected 20 home runs every season, but unfortunately he never reached it while hitting double-digit home runs for five consecutive years. He hit 10 home runs in the first year of Lotte's transfer, but only five last year when he left during the season. Still, in the new season, the fence at Sajik Stadium, which reached 6m, has been lowered to 4.8m. As Sajik is not a large stadium, it has the effect of relaxing the minds of sluggers.
Yoo Kang-nam said, `I'll try to hit it first. I think it's going well so far. I just try to be a batter who can bat with a high probability of getting the best result. I want to regain the trust of director Kim Taehyung," he said, holding himself together. Even hitting coach Lim Hoon and Lee Sung-gon "Thanks to this, I have prepared with a sense of stability without being chased psychologically."," he said, expressing his warm thanks.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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Regarding the friendly match against Taiwan's WBC (World Baseball Classic) national team last time, "Taiwan's baseball fever was noticeable, and our pitchers' conditions were naturally noticeable, perhaps due to occupational diseases." Someone's ball is okay now, how much body came up, and there was a pitcher who still had to talk"I watched it on TV, but my heart was always on the ground together," he added.
"It is a season where we meet with great responsibility. I don't want to disappoint the fans anymore. I hope it's a season where I don't lie to my fans. Please try to cheat one more time and look forward to it. I will do my best to make it a year of reversal."
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
