Choi Won-joon of the KIA Tigers entered 143 games and 668 plate appearances with an immovable leadoff, recording career highs such as 174 hits, 2.95 먹튀검증 runs, and 40 stolen bases. He enlisted in Sangmu, served 18 months, and returned. He played right away from June 13, but his hitting wasn’t great. He was only 2 3 5 li through the first half of July.
However, from the second half, it completely changed. As his hits and on-base numbers increased, so did his leadoff run. In 11 games in the second half, he scored 12 points with a batting average of . Second half OPS 1.012. He is recovering with Choi Won-jun for the 2021 season.
In the Pohang game against Samsung on the 3rd, in the top of the 6th inning, which was behind 3-4, he put an exquisite bunt from 2nd base to 3rd base. Perhaps it was because he was conscious of Choi Won-joon’s quick feet, but the opponent’s mistake came out. In the end, it was a sacrifice bunt that paved the way for a big six-point inning. It was to catch the opponent off guard with baseball that thinks according to the game situation.
“I didn’t get a bunt sign, but I did. Even if the situation was 4-3 and I was out, I thought that if Chan-ho hyung went to third base, Do-yeong and Seong-beom-hyung would be there, so I could catch up with one point. The opposing pitcher (Won Tae-in) was too Okay, I thought it would be nice to look at it one by one. Fortunately, I think the result was good.”
In the 3 games in Pohang, he played an active role in a reversal. He had 5 hits and 4 RBI in 3 games. In the game on the 1st, he scored a right-handed hit in the 8th inning with 1 out, 2nd and 3rd base, behind 6-7, and became the main character of the final stroke. Then, on the 4th, against Hanwha in Gwangju, he scored 3 hits with a leadoff. He reported his first hit with a hit to right in the second inning and a triple to right center on first base out of the fourth. Then, in the 5th inning, with one out and bases loaded, another RBI was added by a timely hit that hit the right wall.
Choi Won-joon, who was selected as the best player of the game, said, “I’ve been sick since Tuesday and I’m not feeling well. I made him use the order (starting lineup) even though it seemed like it wouldn’t really work. I tried holding the bat short, and it worked well,” he explained the secret.
After his comeback, he put a lot of effort into finding the sense of his broken blow. “After returning, I was lost. I was stressed and chased. (Hong Se-wan and Lee Bum-ho) The hitting coaches and the power analysis team helped me find the best feeling for the 2021 season. I still remember what I did mentally and physically.”
After being discharged, he also strengthened his resolve for baseball, which has changed. “I studied a lot while enlisting. Before I went to the army, I wasn’t a player who worked hard. My roommates during my military service days were my younger siblings, and they all worked hard. A lot has changed,” he laughed.
In particular, he is trying to bulk up with his senior Na Seong-beom. Not right away. It starts with spring camp next year. “Even now, I am constantly training weights without days off. Seongbeom-hyung is just a monster. He works so hard. He said that we should do weight training together starting next year’s camp. Before enlisting, I didn’t do any weights, just stretching.”
As Choi Won-joon finds his lead-off instinct, the power of the track and field trio, number 9 Park Chan-ho and number 2 Kim Do-young, is also getting stronger. “I don’t know what will happen because the hitting is different every day, but I hope I can help the team as much as possible. It’s more important to hit well when it’s more important than having a high batting average. I hope I can make a lot of plays that help the team.”