Bae Chan-seung, do you need an explanation? Camp over → Debs Thick Samsung, 4 MVPs instead of 2, all new faces, gift-like results
Mar 04, 2025
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The Samsung Lions held training on the final day of their camp at Onnason Akama Stadium in Okinawa on the 4th. Lions manager Park Jin-man said "It was the busiest and most fruitful training since he took office. I'm sure the team depth has improved" he said positively.
The Samsung Lions will return home via Incheon International Airport on flight KE756 on the 5th. After completing the 28 nights and 29 days of Okinawa's schedule, preparations for the exhibition game will begin on the 8th.
Meanwhile, the Lions Futures team, which conducted off-season training in Okinawa and Kagoshima, Japan, returned home on the 1st.
▶Rookie 4th Company Reveals Future of 'Judges'
In this camp, four rookies in 2025 drew attention.
Four rookies in the first to fourth rounds of the 2025 rookie draft, including pitcher Bae Chan-seung, infielder Shim Jae-hoon and Cha Seung-joon, and outfielder Soo-ho, drew great attention in the camp as they did not look like rookies. The first-team camp included four rookies and completed the schedule.
Bae Chan-seung took two appearances in practice games, including the game against Yomiuri on February 16 and the game against KIA on March 2, and allowed two scoreless innings in perfect pitching. In particular, in the match against KIA, he took the mound in the top of the seventh inning with a 5-4 lead and recorded three consecutive strikeouts. He posted a maximum speed of 152 km of four-seam fastball in camp. If you add two Blue and White games, you have a total of four games and four scoreless innings.
Rookie fielders such as Shim Jae-hoon, Cha Seung-joon and Soo Soo-ho also caught the attention of the coaching staff with their formidable basic skills. Initially, coach Park Jin-man planned to send Cha Seung-joon and Soo Soo-ho among the four to the Futures team in the middle of the Okinawa camp. However, coaches expressed their desire to continue seeing the two players in the first team, and in the end, four rookies were able to be with prominent seniors until the end.
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Professional baseball teams usually announce camp MVP on the final day of off-season training.
In the pitching group, Park Joo-hyuk and Bae Chan-seung were selected as MVP. Catcher Kim Do-hwan and outfielder Hong Hyun-bin were selected in the fielders' group. Manager Park Jin-man explained, `Usually, we pick one from a pitcher and a fielder, but we increased the number of people because there were many players who worked hard.'
Park Joo-hyuk pitched two ⅓ innings in three practice games without losing a point. He lost points in his own Cheongbaek match, but he was impressed by his good pitching in practice games against other teams.
Regarding Bae Chan-seung, another MVP of the pitching group, coach Park Jin-man said, `I don't think I need to explain it.'
Kim Do-hwan played in four practice games and recorded two hits in six at-bats (one home run) with four RBIs. Hong Hyun-bin was 6 for 12 with two RBIs in 6 games.
Camp MVP is basically picked by coaches. It is selected in consideration of training attitudes, not just performance. The fact that four new names have been named MVP is considered a gift to the Lions preparing for this season.
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Captain Koo Ja-wook, who disappeared from the lineup after seriously injuring his knee in the playoffs last year, returned healthy at the end of the camp.
After walking and striking out twice in a practice game against LG on the 1st, he appeared as a pinch hitter with one out in the fifth inning against KIA on the 2nd and hit a grand slam against KIA ace Nail.
Koo Ja-wook was the No. 1 media interview request during the Lions' training camp. All the media who visited the camp interviewed Koo Ja-wook.
Koo Ja-wook, who had predicted that he would play in some form in the last two games, announced his recovery and full-fledged start with a hot grand slam. Thanks to Koo Ja-wook's home run in the final round of camp, the Lions' dugout, which had a difficult schedule, was also lively.
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- If you have a general review of the 2025 spring camp.
▶After moving to Okinawa, the second war camp, the weather must have been cold for a while, so everyone must have had a hard time. It was a relief that I finished the first training session in Guam. This camp seems to have been the most fruitful since the manager took office. Overall, I can feel the team depth has improved. It is also encouraging that competition by position has intensified. Last year, he lost all camp practice games (1 draw and 8 losses), and this year he won 3 games and 3 losses. Compared to last year, it has improved a lot in terms of the contents of the game rather than simple wins and losses.
- Four rookies, including Bae Chan-seung, Shim Jae-hoon, Cha Seung-joon and Soo Soo-ho, completed the first-team camp.
▶All four rookies were intentionally played in the first practice game against Yomiuri (February 16). It was good that all the rookies played without being intimidated. Even if it's a practice game, the players think differently about the Yomiuri match. Cellular field also has a large number of Japanese spectators. Bae Chan-seung threw his ball even in such a situation. If you play ball now, you can make a must-win group. It was felt that the fielder rookies could also unravel their skills with a sense of practice. It is the first time that a rookie has been in the first-team camp since becoming a coach, and it is great that four players have completed it to the end.
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▶ Originally, each batter was selected, but this time, there were many players who worked hard, so two players were selected. Coaches report and determine training attitudes and performance through staff meetings. Park Joo-hyuk and Bae Chan-seung in the pitching group, and Kim Do-hwan and Hong Hyun-bin in the fielders group were selected as MVP. Park Joo-hyuk seemed to have prepared hard, and it is impressive to throw bravely on the mound. I'm not a registered player now, but I've shown enough qualifications. I hope you continue to work hard so that you can play in the bullpen after May. Bae Chan-seung is also MVP of the pitching group, so there is no need to explain it separately. In the fielders group, catcher Kim Do-hwan showed a lot of growth. He got better as he prepared well for the offseason, and he also improved in details such as throwing and blocking. I can feel that Hong Hyun-bin has also adapted well to the new team. I think it could be a good alternative, such as an outfield utility and a pinch runner. Overall, this camp MVP has no name to play for. Maybe it means that Debs got better.
- How did you see the new pitchers such as Furado and Choi Won-tae.
▶ Furado seems to have quickly adapted to the team's atmosphere like a player who has already played in our team for several years. I think having some of the players I played with in the past also helped Furado. His skills are exactly what he expected and he gives a lot of advice to other players. Choi Won-tae is also the best player at Lions Park, his home stadium. I told you to take your time so you don't overface during camp. Of course, expectations are high for the two new pitchers.
- One of the main goals was to strengthen the bullpen ahead of this camp.
▶ It is very regrettable that Kim Yoon-soo (Kim Moo-shin) was out of power due to a sudden elbow injury. This is all the more so because there are not many resources in the bullpen to press the opponent's batter with ball power. However, there are players who will perform well enough, such as Lee Jae-hee, Hwang Dong-jae, Lee Ho-sung, Lee Seung-min, and Yang Chang-seop. Bae Chan-seung will also continue to look at the exhibition game.
- Captain Koo Ja-wook hit a grand slam in the final game of the camp.
▶ In last year's Korean Series, all the players felt the difference between Koo Ja-wook being in the lineup and not being in the lineup. It's good to hit a home run, but it seems more important to take good care of your body until the exhibition game so that you don't get another injury. Koo led the young players well throughout the spring camp with Kang Min-ho. He will play a good role in the dugout again this season.
Photo provided = Samsung Lions
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
