“(Jung) Hoon-yi, do you want to play third base?”
Seven consecutive Korean Series appearances and three championships. These are the words that follow manager Kim Tae-hyung.
It’s an unrivaled career. Although the Lotte Giants are hovering around the bottom of the standings, they have won 11 games despite injuries to key players and career slumps, thanks to Kim Tae-hyung’s bold play and determination.
His unwavering determination to push forward once again shone through. Jeong-hoon came in as the “third baseman” against the Samsung Lions on March 3-4, and made a revolutionary contribution to the series sweep, contributing to both wins. He went 2-for-7 with two home runs and three RBIs, including a game-winning two-run shot on day one and a wedge hit on day two.
Although Jung-hoon comes from a second base background, he doesn’t have much experience at third base. Moreover, 스포츠토토 he is a 37-year-old veteran who was born in 1987 and is in his 19th year of playing. Former manager Moon Hoe Heo utilized Jung-hoon as a center-field-to-first base platoon player, but former manager Larry Sutton had him focus on first base.
After playing left field earlier this season, Jeong-hoon started at third base this time.
Samsung Electronics on March 3. The Lotte bench was shaken when Son Ho-young, who led off the second inning with a single, complained of hamstring pain. The departure of a player who has been a mainstay of the team recently, not only in defense but also in offense.
Veteran Oh Seon-jin came in to play center field. Trailing 0-5, Lotte started its comeback in the top of the fourth inning with a solo home run by Jeon Jun-woo, but the “No. 5” hitter could only manage an infield single. Lotte added two more runs in the next two innings on an error by Samsung first baseman McKinnon when Yoo Kang-nam grounded to first base with runners on second and third. If not for the error, it would have been just one run.
In the top of the fifth inning, Jeon Jun-woo hit a sacrifice fly to center field. Manager Kim Tae-hyung made a bold decision to pinch-hit for Oh Sun-jin, but Jeong struck out.
At this point,
Kim Tae-hyung asked Jeong-hoon, ‘Can you play third base? On the 5th at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, Kim Tae-hyung said, “It was a day where offense was more important than defense… Hoon probably thought I’d substitute him. He’s been doing a great job defending third base,” he laughed. Jung-hoon hit the game-winning two-run shot in the top of the ninth inning, tied 6-6, to win the game 8-7.
“I like his determination, temperament, and confidence. That’s why he’s strong in clutch situations. Even if you have good defense and batting practice, if you have a weak temperament, you will make mistakes in the game. But when I saw him batting practice before the game, he was bouncing around. I asked him, “Do you want to try third base?” He said, “I’ve played second base a lot.” I said, “OK, try third base.” I sent him out. I was like, ‘Just get one,’ but…(he hit the game-winning hit).”
Kim’s style didn’t change in Lotte. In the next day’s game, Jung-hoon was the ‘starting third baseman’.
It had been 2163 days since June 2, 2018, when Jeong-hoon had “defended” third base against Samsung Electronics on June 3. At that time, Jung-hoon was pinch-hitting for Chae Tae-in and fielded third base. He did not enter the batter’s box.
Like the 4th, the “starting third baseman” appearance goes back even further.
It was a whopping 2195 days since May 1, 2018, when he started at third base for the sixth time.
On the day Lotte used a six-run seventh inning to pull off a dramatic 9-2 come-from-behind victory, Jung-hoon hit an RBI double in the seventh inning to help the team win.
Initially, the Lotte infield envisioned by manager Kim Tae-hyung before the season was a lineup of Han Dong-hee at third base, 온라인 슬롯 Noh Jin-hyuk at shortstop and Kim Min-sung at second base, backed up by Park Seung-wook, Oh Sun-jin and Choi Hang. However, that changed when the main players fell into a terrible slump.
The awakening of trade acquisition Son Ho-young, Lee Hak-joo’s sparkling hitting, and the recent form of Na Seung-yup and Go Seung-min have given the infield some breathing room.
“Lee is also a potential player,” Kim said. The infield is a mess right now, but we’ll use him according to the situation,” Kim said, emphasizing his open-mindedness.