KT coach Lee Kang-cheol is the busiest person in the KBO league over the next two months. In February, when the clubs all start preparing for the 2023 season, coach Lee Kang-cheol, as the KT command tower, must lead preparations for the season as well as lead the preparations for the competition as the command tower for the baseball team to participate in the 5th World Baseball Classic (WBC) held in March.
Expectations for the WBC have risen because the WBC is a tournament that needs to raise the pride of Korean baseball again, and the leadership of coach Lee Kang-cheol, who has raised the KT mound to the highest level in the league since his debut as a command tower. The burden on the national team is quite heavy, but right now coach Lee Kang-cheol has only one thought in his head, KT first base.
Coach Lee Kang-cheol said on the 26th, “I have a rough idea of the national team operation, and in the end, the condition of the players on the day of the competition is the most important, so there is honestly nothing to worry about right now.” However, I am deeply considering the issue of first baseman.”
This year, KT does not have a big change in power. Shortstop Shim Woo-jun enlisted in the military, but free agent Kim Sang-soo was recruited so there is no vacancy. There is no change in the mound except for the replacement of one foreign pitcher. Kang Baek-ho is the player who should be a ‘plus factor’ while maintaining his power. It is also a variable that holds KT’s all season, which fell to 4th place in the defending champion last year. 온라인바카라
Last season, KT, which envisioned a system of designated hitter Park Byeong-ho and first baseman Kang Baek-ho, recruited free agent Park Byung-ho, had a completely different season than expected due to Kang Baek-ho’s major injury just before the start of the season. Park Byung-ho, who tried to step down as a ‘first base backup’, played full-time first baseman, but he played perfectly in both offense and defense to the point of winning the home run king and Golden Glove. This year, healthy Kang Baek-ho joins the starting lineup.
It is difficult to give up Park Byeong-ho’s sense of stability to turn first baseman to Kang Baek-ho as he did a year ago. Last season, Park Byeong-ho’s first base defense was one of the strongest factors that boosted KT’s power. However, in order to increase the offensive power of the resurrected Park Byung-ho, it is necessary to arrange sufficient stamina compared to last season.
Even if Park Byeong-ho is assigned first base, the problem is how to use Kang Baek-ho. Kang Baek-ho, who was a catcher in high school, went to the outfield for the first time after joining KT in 2018 and played as a left fielder. The placement of Park Byeong-ho and Kang Baek-ho is something that needs to be seriously considered not only for KT’s performance this season, but also for Kang Baek-ho’s future and KT’s future.
The two can take turns taking first base, but coach Lee Kang-cheol is deeply contemplating which one of them should be the main first baseman and whether there is a more effective way to raise both. Coach Lee Kang-cheol said, “I’m thinking about it, but I’m going to go to the camp and talk (with the players) first.”
Coach Lee Kang-chul, who is busy, will leave for Arizona on the 27th, earlier than the main team. Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona, where KT trains, is an overseas training ground that KT has been using since 2019. At the same time, it is also the training ground for the WBC national team. Coach Lee Kang-cheol, who has to be with KT camp only in the beginning, plans to go to the site earlier and spend time with the key players who went out first in the starting lineup, asking for the team atmosphere after moving to the national team after mid-February.