"Go around and around Heo Do-hwan." Hi, I bet on fostering LG catchers...Kim Jae-sung and Kim Ki-yeon left, and will Lee Joo-heon and Kim Beom-seok get a chance
"Go around and around Heo Do-hwan." Hi, I bet on fostering LG catchers...Kim Jae-sung and Kim Ki-yeon left, and will Lee Joo-heon and Kim Beom-seok get a chance
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LG has stepped up efforts to foster backup catcher. It has excluded veteran catcher Heo Do-hwan, who was a backup catcher for Yoo Kang-nam (current Lotte Giants) and Park Dong-won for the past three years and was in charge of Choi Won-tae, from the list of potential starters. If the composition of the team does not change, next year will be the season when a promising catcher in his late 30s will be given his first backup catcher duty in four years, not a veteran in his late 30s.먹튀검증
"We decided to remove two players from the list of players through the process of organizing their teams," said an LG official on Monday morning. Heo said he was planning to play active until next year, but now he heard about the release.
"I haven't made a decision yet, so I have nothing to say for sure," Huh Do-hwan said. "I was thinking of playing next year. I haven't decided yet because I heard about the release the day before yesterday." If there is a proposal for recruitment from another team, there is a possibility of extending the active duty, but nothing was decided until the morning of the 24th.
He posted a batting average of 0.138 in 59 games this year. However, he was not in a position to expect a hit. LG's main catcher Park Dong-won played an absolute season this year. Among backup catchers, Heo appeared in the most games. He faithfully served as the first backup catcher for three years after joining LG.
He also served as the "exclusive catcher" for several starting pitchers. When Lee Min-ho and Kim Yoon-sik, prospective players in 2020 took the mound, and from the second half of last year, Choi Won-tae took the mound as the exclusive catcher. Heo wore a mask for 254 ⅔ innings in 63 games (27 starts) in 2022, and 45 games (212 starts) in 2023, and 250 innings in 58 games (27 starts) this year.
LG has been continuously making efforts to have its promising catcher as its No. 1 backup. However, not many players passed the coaching staff`s test for sure. While advancing to the postseason for the past six consecutive years, most of the backup catcher was left to a veteran. Heo Do-hwan took over the position of current SPOTV commentator.
It was not limited to the catcher's part, but as the "Winnow" trend continued, it took a long time to lean on players with proven careers rather than fostering promising players. This phenomenon was even more noticeable in the catcher's side, where experience is important. The only exception is 2021 when Kim Jae-sung (current Samsung Lions) played in nearly 200 innings. Kim Jae-sung transferred as a compensation player for Park Hae-min.
#LG Twins' main catcher in the last 6 seasons - No. 1 backup catcher defensive inning
In 2019, Yoo Kang-nam 968 ⅓ innings (4th overall) and Lee Sung-woo 210 innings
Yoo Kang-nam 1009 ⅔ innings in 2020 (No. 1 overall) and Lee Sung-woo 236 innings
In 2021, Yoo Kang-nam 961 innings (1st overall), Kim Jae-sung 198 ⅔ innings
Yoo Kang-nam 1008 ⅓ innings (2nd overall) in 2022 and Heo Do-hwan 254 ⅔ innings
Park Dong-won 982 innings in 2023 (No. 1 overall) and Heo Do-hwan 212 innings
Park Dong-won 944 ⅔ innings in 2024 (No. 1 overall) and Heo Do-hwan 250 innings
Hur has been threatened with the No. 1 backup catcher position since last year. Kim Ki-yeon (Doosan Bears) got the chance first last year. This is why the first game of the Doosan Bears in 2023 started on June 4. However, in the end, Heo took charge of the postseason game as a backup catcher. As a result, he has a unique title of "winning the three telecommunications companies," which is hard to come by anymore.
This year, Kim Bum-seok, in his second year as a professional, emerged as a backup catcher, but Heo Do-hwan had a chance again. Kim Bum-seok left the spring camp due to injury, naturally leaving Heo Do-hwan's position.
Up until now, LG had decided on a backup catcher. However, LG faced the challenge of deciding on a young catcher regardless of the outcome as it chose to say goodbye to Heo. The player who has recently attracted the most attention is Lee Ju-heon, not Kim Bum-suk.
After graduating from Seongnam High School, Lee joined LG as the 27th overall pick in the third round of the 2020 draft. After joining the military in 2022, Lee returned to the team this year and posted a batting average of 0.384 in 39 games in the Futures League, and made his dream debut in the first division on Sept. 25. In three games in the first division, he recorded four hits in six at-bats. As he became defeated in the second round of the playoffs, he made his postseason debut by wearing a mask instead of Park Dong-won.