Can Lotte Giants recruit Ahn Kwon-soo (30) be a godsend?

Ahn Kwon-soo, who newly joined Lotte, is showing his presence every day in demonstration games. Ahn Kwon-soo started as a center fielder and 9th hitter in the 2023 season demonstration game SSG held at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 16th, and made a big success with 3 hits in 4 at bats. He also scored the team’s first RBI with a timely hit in the 5th inning with 2 outs on 1st and 2nd base, trailing 0-3.

Ahn Kwon-soo participated in 4 demonstration games and recorded a batting average of 0.667 (4 hits in 6 at-bats). Although the sample is small, the sense of hitting has improved compared to the practice game played during the spring camp (2 hits in 16 bats, 0.125 batting average).

Currently, a fierce competition for survival is taking place in the Lotte outfield. When Jack Rex, a foreign hitter who succeeded in renewing the contract, and Hwang Seong-bin, who emerged as the leadoff last year, were expected to take one spot each, Koh Seung-min, Kim Min-seok, Yoon Dong-hee, and Ahn Kwon-soo are fiercely competing for the remaining spot.

Jeon Jun-woo, who was the main left fielder until last year, will take on the role of retired Lee Dae-ho and play the designated hitter or first baseman this year. Ko Seung-min, who has strength in batting, is more often used as a first baseman in demonstration games. Currently, Ahn Kwon-soo, who has a lot of first-team experience compared to Yoon Dong-hee and Kim Min-seok, and is showing good performances in real battles, is clearly appealing his strengths to Sutton.

Ahn Kwon-soo, a Korean-Japanese, entered the KBO League stage with the 99th pick in the 2nd round of the 10th round of the 2020 rookie draft. Having played an outstanding role as a backup outfielder, he played in 76 games last year, recording a batting average of 0.297 (71 hits in 239 at-bats), 20 RBIs, 3 steals, an OPS of 0.712, and a WAR (contribution to victory over substitutes, based on stats) of 1.15, ending a career-high season. sent. 토토사이트

However, Ahn Kwon-soo was released from Doosan after the season last year. The reason Doosan released Ahn Kwon-soo was military service. According to the Military Service Act for Koreans in Japan, Ahn Kwon-soo could play in the KBO League until 2023, and if he extended his active service after that, he had to enlist in the military.

Lotte general manager Seong Min-gyu, who actively stepped up to strengthen his power in this Stove League, contacted him immediately after hearing the news of Ahn Kwon-soo’s release and offered him a recruitment. Ahn Kwon-soo, who was at an important crossroads as a baseball player, chose to try one more year in the KBO League instead of returning to Japan.

For Ahn Kwon-soo to continue his career in the KBO League, 2023 is a more important season than ever. Attention is focusing on whether the meeting between Lotte, which seeks to strengthen the player base, and Ahn Kwon-soo, who must set a course a year later, can produce a win-win result.