Every player who plays in the first team has a reason. Basically, the coaching staff has to judge that he has the skills to play in the first team. It is impossible to consistently play in the first team without the trust of the coaching staff.
Lee Min-woo (30) and Han Seung-hyuk (30), who each started their careers at KIA, were right-handers that KIA worked hard for a long time. Coach Ki-tae Kim, coach Matt Williams, and coach Kim Jong-guk, who had risen to the KIA’s command tower since 2015, all wanted to use the two players in the first team. The fact that he played for quite a long time, not just one game, means that he believed in his skills and potential, and that he was quite high in the hierarchy of the KIA players.
Han Seung-hyeok, who graduated from Deoksu High School and was nominated in the 1st round (8th overall) by KIA in 2011, has aroused great expectations from the club and fans as a pitcher who can throw a fast ball from the time of his debut. Although he lacked some control, the fast ball itself, which reached 150 km/h, was clearly attractive. He appeared in 228 first-team career games. Last year, he caught the eye of coach Kim Jong-guk and went around the starting rotation. At the beginning of the season, he thrilled KIA fans with his improved appearance compared to before.
Lee Min-woo, who graduated from Hyocheon High School and Kyungsung University and received the KIA’s first nomination in 2015, had high expectations that he could immediately play an active role with a sense of power, as can be seen in the modifier ‘university graduate first nomination’. He is not very fast, but he can use various breaking balls and has stamina, so he wore the KIA uniform. He made his debut in the first team in 2017 and played 129 first-team games, starting and middle.
However, it failed to live up to Bench’s belief with a ‘great success’. Even though he was on the rise, he did not last long in this uptrend. His position within the team gradually declined. In the end, both players ended up leaving KIA with a trade. Coincidentally, the two players met again at Hanwha. Lee Min-woo was traded in April of last year, and Han Seung-hyeok was traded in November after the season ended, so he wore a Hanwha uniform.
Both players could be seen as the main chip of the trade. 안전놀이터At times, he was criticized by fans for his sluggish performance, but it can be seen that he received some trust from the Hanwha coaching staff and front desk following the KIA coaching staff. A trade could be a turning point in a player’s career. I am still in my early 30’s. It’s never too late to start over.
Lee Min-woo has played 24 games since joining Hanwha last year. It can be seen that the Hanwha coaching staff also experimented with Lee Min-woo quite consistently. He also had four starts. He was a somewhat jagged season, but in 2023, after a year of team adaptation, he is a resource to look forward to again. Han Seung-hyeok is a player brought by KIA with a giant resource named Byun Woo-hyuk. You can get a glimpse of his expectations in that he paid a pretty hefty price.
Hanwha, which is undergoing a long and lengthy rebuild, is not yet perfect on the mound. Despite sporadic and promising performances by young players, the team’s ERA last year was 4.83, the lowest in the league. In order for Hanwha to finish last, the mound power must improve. Although young players such as Moon Dong-ju and Kim Seo-hyun are receiving 안전놀이터 a lot of attention, they cannot be responsible for the whole season. The Hanwha pitching staff needs the strength of Lee Min-woo and Han Seung-hyuk, who can be called veterans. Attention is focusing on whether he will be able to unleash the talents that all leaders cherished.