Were there such catchers in Lotte’s 42-year history?

The cornerstone of the ‘Captor Kingdom’ that depends on Yoo Kang-nam, the ‘mentor and leader’ of 8 billion won. There would have been no such catcher in the 42-year history of the Lotte Giants. From the starting pitcher to the backup, the team has catchers that are worth almost as much as 10 teams. Yoo Kang-nam, the main catcher, has established himself as the best-known catcher in the league, while Jung In-geun is recognized for his value in defense and pitching lead. On top of that, Sohn Sung-bin, who has been reborn as a candidate for the national team’s home turf by addressing military issues and displaying strong pitching. Key players, backup and promising players have all formed catchers that have been recognized for their value in the first team. 메이저 토토사이트

“I think the Lotte catcher is the best in the league,” said Kim Tae-hyung, who was newly appointed this year. “Yu Kang-nam has played so many games and there are young catchers, so I think I can advise you on what I have experienced.” The best catcher in Lotte’s history is still Kang Min-ho (Samsung). More than six years have passed since he left the team, but Kang’s name cannot be excluded from the history of Lotte’s catcher.

If you rank Kang Min-ho for the best season as a catcher for the Lotte Giants based on the contribution to victory (War) against a “Statties” substitute, Kang’s name will appear eight times from 1st to 10th place. He recorded a 5.38th WAR in 2011, 5.37 in 2008 and 5.23 in 2015, with Kang in all the top three spots. The fourth place was the late Lim Soo-hyuk, who recorded a 5.04 WAR in 1996. From fifth to ninth place, Kang is also from the top. And Choi Ki-moon (currently manager of the Paju Challengers) ranked 10th with 3.26 in 2001.

Before recruiting Yoo Kang-nam as an FA for four years this year, Lotte wasted time in finding his successor Kang Min-ho and failed to play in the postseason for five years. After recruiting Yoo Kang-nam this year, the team continued its fall baseball competition until June, but failed to play in the postseason as the entire team faced a falling trend. It failed to pass the fall baseball threshold for six consecutive years. Yoo experienced some ups and downs this year. He left regret from his early batting performance.

His contribution increased as his batting started to recover from the mid-to-second half of the season, but his batting average of 261 percent (92 hits in 352 times at bat) with 10 homers and 55 RBIs and an OPS of .726 was regrettable for himself. “I felt pressured because I didn’t come here for a small amount of money. I wish my team would win every day, and I wish I could also hit well and get a score,” Yoo said after the season ended. “I think my team would have done better if I had done half as much as I did in the second half of the season at the beginning of the season. I regret that the season is over.”

However, he quickly combined with Lotte pitchers in terms of their strengths in framing and teamwork. Lotte’s ERA was 4.16 this year, which was in the middle range. Compared with 4.45 (9th) in 2022, 5.37 (10th) in 2021, and 4.64 (6th) in 2020, the reading was significantly lowered. Despite trial and error, Yoo has led Lotte pitchers well. His average defense-related earned run (FIP) was 3.98, ranking third in the league. The team was on par with KT (3.80) and LG (3.96), who clashed in the Korean Series. Had the team’s help been provided, Lotte might have felt the “Yoo Gangnam effect” properly. “It is regrettable that the team’s ERA did not reach the three-point level. Still, it was the lowest number in the last three to four years. I need to show my improvement,” he said, expressing regret and pride.

Manager Kim Tae-hyung trusts Yoo’s experience. As a catcher, he thinks his past experiences are a valuable asset that cannot be ignored. Yoo was also the first player to call out at the team’s meeting. “I talked about what the coach felt and what I felt about pitchers’ personalities,” Yoo said. He also participated in the wrap-up camp for about two turns, which involved rookie and backup players. “I told him to come to the training camp to make up for his performance, but what’s more important is that I called him because I had a lot of questions for pitchers,” Kim said at the time.

From LG onwards, Yoo almost led the season alone without backup catcher’s assistance. The honor of catcher who played many innings could be linked to the absence of a backup catcher. However, he confirmed that the “Golden Bull Bull” could also cause a setback in Yoo Kang-nam. In late July, he left the primary league for about 20 days due to a ruptured intraperitoneal muscle.

In fact, Jung In-geun and Son Sung-bin played so well at Lotte that they could not feel the absence of Yoo Kang-nam. They are players who are clearly incomplete, but their present and future values are considered one of the best in the league. These are players who should one day succeed Yoo Kang-nam. The catcher’s career is long, but he also needs to prepare diligently for the 31-year-old successor to Yoo Kang-nam. Jung In-geun and Son Sung-bin should take over the baton. We should not forget the lessons we have wasted the past five years because we were reluctant to find Kang Min-ho’s successor. The club has a role to play and plays a lot of roles as the leader of the catcher’s kingdom in Yoo Kang-nam. It is for the simultaneous rise of Yoo Kang-nam’s individual and Lotte’s catcher.

“I think it will be a good time to learn a lot from the coach,” Yoo said. “I think we need to prepare well for the spring camp so that we don’t see any loopholes in the catcher’s part. We need to prepare for consistent good reviews.” “Of course, we may see weaknesses or loopholes, but we need to minimize them so that we can hear what the ‘catcher’s powerhouse’ says,” Yoo said.

In fact, Yoo Kang-nam is generously giving away his know-how to his junior teammates. “I’ve been watching baseball without thinking about it. But after I was discharged from the military, I started watching baseball with my coach and (Yoo) Gangnam-gu hyung’s advice,” he said. “As I focused on what he did depending on the situation, I think I learned and felt a lot.” When I go to a game, he claps a lot and compliments me a lot.