“(In the 2009 WBC finals) When Lee Beom-ho hit a tie against Yu Darvish (San Diego Padres)! It was so cool. That’s why I started playing baseball.”
Can the dream of World Baseball Classic (WBC) kids come true?
Seok Sang-ho (23) was called ‘Seok Dong-ryeol’ during his time at Korea University. His strengths include a heavy fastball that reaches up to 150km and confident pitching that pierces the body without hesitation. In addition to his fastball, he also throws a slider and splitter.
In college baseball, he had a 2.12 earned run average in 13 games and 34 innings. He is expected to be a bullpen pitcher who will be active in the first team.
He wore a Lotte Giants uniform in the 7th round of the rookie draft. Seok Sang-ho, who is participating in the rookie camp, laughed and said, “The training is really systematic. I feel like I’m getting better every day.”
“I haven’t pitched yet. He’s gotten more into weights than he did in college, and he’s been doing wits training, so he’s probably able to throw more confidently.”
During his school days, he experienced many hardships. He was a first baseman until middle school. However, he turned to pitching after suffering a microfracture of his left wrist in his third year of junior high school. At the time, the coaching staff strongly objected to his potential as a hitter, but Seok Sang-ho himself reluctantly changed to a pitcher. “I thought that pitching rather than hitting would have a better chance of going pro,” he explained. As a result, he turned pro, so he made a good choice.
In high school, he transferred from Seongnam High School to Cheongwon High School in search of more opportunities to participate. At that time, Seongnam High School had Son Dong-hyeon (KT Wiz) and Kang Min-seong (former Lotte). However, due to an elbow injury in his senior year of high school, he was not designated as a professional player, and only after going through college did he join the KBO League. He is the only college graduate among the new players selected by Lotte this year.
When asked how he started playing baseball, he brought up the 2009 WBC. In the eyes of Seok Sang-ho, who was an elementary school student at the time, baseball players looked so cool. In particular, Lee Bum-ho’s tie against Darvish at the end of the final match was cited as the most impressive scene.
His role model is Koo Seung-min, a senior at Cheongwon High School. He is a direct senior in that he is a graduate of college as well as school, and is a bullpen with good pitches.
He is a thorough routine player. They say that they set the number of tubing, weight balls, and sprint runs before the start. He explained, “I always move according to the set schedule before the game. It is a great help to maintain my condition.”
Unlike his serious voice, he also drew attention for his pitching style that drives batters like fighting cocks. When asked about his own pitch, the answer came back, “I think it’s a ball that can compete in the bullpen for the first team. I want to play together with seniors in the first team.” 메이저사이트
“Originally, I wasn’t confident, but I’ve been trying to change my personality since my senior year of college. I always think positively and try to be confident, so I think I’m doing better in baseball. To get into the first team as quickly as possible this year, and stick with it for a long time. Being there is the goal.”