Lee Woo-sung impressed after the opening day

Classified as a backup in the KIA Tigers’ outfield ahead of the 2023 season, Lee Woo-sung, 31, impressed after the opening day and earned a starting spot within a month. He took advantage of the opportunity that came his way, hitting triple digits for the first time in his professional career. With his skills in full bloom, Lee is trying to transform himself into a first baseman in order to erase the team’s weaknesses.

Last year, Lee was a hot commodity for KIA. Alternating between left and right field, he had his best performance since his professional debut. In 126 games, he batted .301 with 107 hits, eight home runs, 58 RBIs, eight doubles, and a 0.780 OPS. He was also honored with his first career All-Star selection.

In a recent call with Newsies, Lee said, “I’ve never had a season like this before. I’ve always dreamed of playing professionally, and I think I was able to do it because I stayed strong. Even when I wasn’t doing well, the coach gave me a chance. I was grateful and happy every day,” he said, 카지노사이트 adding, “I kept my routine of going to the ballpark in the morning to train to develop good habits, and I gained confidence.”

The most noticeable change was in his hitting.

After batting in the low double digits for six years after his first-team debut in 2016, Lee broke out in 2022 with a .292 batting average. Last season, he surpassed the triple-digit batting average mark and became a regular outfielder.

On his hitting, Lee said, “I kept practicing what the hitting coaches told me. I tried this and that in the past, but it wasn’t good. Even if the things they told me didn’t work out, I tried to keep doing them.”

Lee drew attention at the end of last season when he worked on his first base defense in a wrap-up camp. Although he has never played first base in the pros, he asked to train at first base to solve the team’s problem. Currently, KIA does not have a solid starter at first base. Hwang Dae-in (batting average of 0.213), Byun Woo-hyuk (batting average of 0.225), and Oh Sun-woo (batting average of 0.179), who played first base last year, all performed well.

The final camp is a process to prepare for the next season.

Lee said, ” I thought it would be helpful for the team if I practiced first base defense, so I told the coach first.” “In the outfield, I have a lot of time to play defense because I’m far away from the batter, but when I’m in the infield, I feel very close. I need to practice more. I’m working on it,” he said.

“In spring training, I have to catch the ball hit by the batter from the first base position. I’m going to work on my delivery, my movement, and my teamwork,” he said, explaining the areas he will be focusing on in spring training.

Lee, who has played in 454 games over eight seasons in the professional ranks, has never really had much experience with fall baseball. 카지노사이트 추천 He was named to the roster for the 2022 postseason wild-card game, but had to watch from the bench.

For Lee, fall baseball is a dream come true. “I want to start in fall baseball this year, and I want my team to be in the top half of the standings from the beginning of the season and go high in the postseason,” he said, “and most importantly, I want my teammates to be injury-free.”