Professional baseball LG Twins infielder Son Ho-young has been developing his presence by leaving a strong impression from the beginning of the 2023 KBO demonstration game. LG, which has to develop a backup for starting shortstop Oh Ji-hwan, is laughing at Son Ho-young’s growth.
As of the 17th, Son Ho-young participated in all 4 demonstration games and recorded a batting average of 0.400 (4 hits in 10 at-bats), 5 walks, 2 RBIs, 6 runs, an on-base percentage of 0.700, and a slugging percentage of 0.625.
He ranked first in exhibition game runs scored and on-base percentage, and ranked third in batting average and slugging percentage. It’s only 4 games, but Son Ho-young’s surprise performance, which had no presence until last year, stands out.
LG is using Son Ho-young as the starting shortstop in the demonstration game as signboard shortstop Oh Ji-hwan participates in the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC). Coach Yeom Gyeong-yeop made Son Ho-young play full-time without replacement in 4 demonstration games.
Oh Ji-hwan, who returned from the tournament, took one at-bat as a pinch hitter against the Daegu Samsung Lions on the 16th and plans to increase his playing time in earnest, but Son Ho-young made a pretty strong impression in the previous four games.
Son Ho-young is not to the point of threatening Oh Ji-hwan’s position as the ‘best shortstop in the league’ right now. However, finding a ‘competitive’ shortstop to support Oh Ji-hwan was LG’s biggest task in the 2023 season. That’s why LG can’t help but be happy with Son Ho-young’s performance.
After taking over the LG baton in November of last year, coach Yeom pointed out that “the shortstop is the most lacking part.” Oh Ji-hwan, who won the Golden Glove in the shortstop category, was holding on, but he said that there was no player who deserved to support him.
Director Yeom expressed his intention to ease the burden on Oh Ji-hwan, saying, “In the 2022 season, Oh Ji-hwan had too many defensive innings, and as a result, Oh Ji-hwan’s batting average fell. He needs to arrange physical strength so that Oh Ji-hwan can have a career high season.” And at last, director Yeom paid attention to Son Ho-young among infield resources.
Son Ho-young, who signed a minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs in 2014 and challenged the Major League (MLB), did not grow as much as expected. He failed to fulfill his dream of becoming a big leaguer, and even after joining LG in 2020, he only appeared in 114 games in three seasons.
However, after Son Ho-young was included in the LG spring camp roster, he sweated and raised his presence. Coach Yeom also mentioned Son Ho-young’s name while expressing satisfaction with the growth of young players while closing the camp.
Son Ho-young also had a clear advantage in the competition for backup shortstop. Even in the demonstration game,토토사이트 he played a solid defense and served as a lubricant for the batting order by getting on base in all games. Manager Yeom also expressed satisfaction, saying, “Son Ho-young (#1 in batting average, hits, and RBI in the demonstration game) was able to play a good game while leading the batting line well with Moon Sung-joo.”
With this flow, the green light was turned on for Son Ho-young to join the opening entry. In addition, Director Yeom is expected to be able to solve one of the biggest concerns.