The heat of this WBC is very hot. Recently, an increasing number of players have announced their absence or cannot participate in the WBC due to various problems, but this is why top-notch stars are mobilizing in the major leagues. In the case of the Tokyo Round (Group B), tickets on the day of the Japanese game were sold out early. The same goes for the semi-finals and finals, where you don’t know which team will advance.
In the midst of this, the US ‘New York Post’ said on the 9th (hereinafter Korean time), “WBC is a world-class tournament,” and “KBO League MVP Lee Jung-hoo (Kiwoom Heroes) and Nippon Professional Baseball Pacific League MVP Yamamoto Yoshinobu (Orix Buffaloes) will also participate. Remember that,” he said, paying attention to the WBC Group B.
The reason why ‘New York Post’ pays attention to Group B’s match is that Korea and Japan are included, and especially Lee Jung-hoo and Yamamoto are participating. Lee Jung-hoo played in 142 games last year, recording 193 hits, 23 home runs, 113 RBIs, 85 runs, a batting average of 0.349 OPS and 0.996, and won 5 batting crowns (batting average, hits, RBIs, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage), and won the regular season MVP title.
Lee Jung-hoo, who has played in 798 games over 6 seasons in the KBO League and has a great career of 1076 hits, 59 homers, 470 RBIs, 531 runs and a batting average of 0.342 OPS 0.905, will challenge to advance to the big leagues through the posting system after the 2023 season. Lee Jung-hoo finished consulting with the club and joined hands with ‘Devil’s Agent’ Scott Boras.
The ‘New York Post’ noted, “It is almost certain that Lee Jung-hoo is coming to the major leagues. He also signed a contract with Scott Boras. Lee Jung-hoo hit 23 homers last year with a batting average of 0.349 and 66 walks while striking out only 32.” did. However, there are not only positive factors.
The media said, “People who have watched Lee Jung-hoo say, ‘The KBO league does not have the speed of the major leagues.’ Considering the fact that it is not, it is questionable whether the performance in Korea will continue in the major leagues.” 먹튀검증
Nevertheless, Lee Jung-hoo’s chances of success are high. According to the ‘New York Post’, a scout said, “Lee Jung-hoo has some tools. He has contact ability, he has speed. He has a good arm. He should be able to do a lot.” I know how to make it.”
There are several notable players in Japan as well, but ‘New York Post’ took notice of Yamamoto. Yamamoto digested 193⅔innings in 26 games in 2021, 18 wins, 5 losses, 206 strikeouts with an average ERA of 1.39, and last year played 26 games and recorded an average ERA of 1.68 with 15 wins, 5 losses and 205 strikeouts. Yamamoto won the Pacific League pitcher’s 4 crowns (most wins, strikeouts, ERA, win rate), MVP, and Sawamura Award for two consecutive years. Yamamoto, like Lee Jung-hoo, is also aiming to advance to the major leagues.
According to the media, a major league scout said, “Yamamoto has nothing left to prove in Japan. The splitter is also a plus pitch, and the movement of the fastball is good,” he said. “It is much better than Senga Kodai (New York Mets).”
The head of scouting for another club said, “Yamamoto uses five pitches and will win big contracts. In particular, his splitter and curveball are world-class, and his fastball also consistently hits 94-95 miles (about 151-152 km). Ground ball He has excellent judo skills and is good at judoing swings.” Another scout added, “They call Senga’s pokeball ‘ghost poke’, but Yamamoto’s is better.”
It is unknown whether Lee Jung-hoo and Yamamoto will face each other in the Tokyo round. Actually, the chances are not very high. This is because Shohei Ohtani (Angels) or Yu Darvish (San Diego Padres) is highly likely to start the game against Korea. However, it is clear that Lee Jung-hoo in Korea and Yamamoto in Japan are receiving a lot of attention from major league officials as well as the American media.