LG coach Yeom Kyung-yeop said,

“This year’s hitter training failed Kim Beom-seok, Song Chan-eui, and Son Ho-young need to grow up.”

LG Twins Son Ho-young.

Coach Yeom Kyung-yeop, who led the LG Twins to their first championship in 29 years, achieved many things in 2023, but diagnosed one thing as a 'failure'.

He blamed himself for saying that compared to the mound where many new faces appeared, the training of young fielders did not go as planned.

Looking back on one season, Coach Yeom said, “I think pitcher development was close to 90% successful. Yoo Young-chan, Baek Seung-hyeon, and Park Myung-geun threw well and were able to wisely overcome the crisis. However, training as a batter failed,” he said.

LG's free agents Park Dong-won and Austin Dean joined, and backup infielder Shin Min-jae took over as the starting second baseman, but the young fielders failed to stand out.

Ahead of the season, Coach Yeom expressed his expectations for Lee Jae-won, Song Chan-eui, and Son Ho-young. However, Lee Jae-won, who tried to dissuade him from completing military service and raise him as the 'second Park Byeong-ho', only hit 4 home runs, and Song Chan-ui also left a shabby record with a batting average of 0.056 in 19 games. Son Ho-young, who was supposed to relieve Oh Ji-hwan's burden, also dropped his contribution, playing only 27 games due to a hamstring injury.

LG, which ranked first in team batting average (0.279) this season, successfully renewed a contract with Austin and retained all of its existing starting fielders. LG, which is aiming for its second consecutive victory, can boast powerful firepower next year, but Coach Yeom argued that young fielders must grow and the player base must become thicker.

Lee Jae-won plans to prepare for military service, so Director Yeom is paying attention to Song Chan-eui, Son Ho-young, and Kim Beom-seok. He said, “The training of Song Chan-eui, Son Ho-young, and Kim Beom-seok is in progress. “If they grow to the next level, LG will become a much stronger team next year and the year after,” he said.

LG Twins Kim Beom-seok.

Among them, expectations are the highest for Kim Beom-seok, who will be in his second year. Kim Beom-seok, who is evaluated as LG's next-generation homemaker, only played in 10 games for the first team in his debut season, but showed excellent hitting ability in the second team. He won the Futures All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP), and was also named in the Korean Series entry, hitting a pinch hit in Game 4.

He, who played as a designated hitter due to a bad shoulder condition, is expected to become a first baseman starting next year, but it is expected that he will have more opportunities to wear the catcher's mask. This is because LG has only two catchers left, Park Dong-won and Heo Do-hwan, who can be immediately utilized in the first team after Kim Ki-yeon transferred to the Doosan Bears through the second draft.

LG general manager Cha Myung-seok said, “Catcher Kim Beom-seok is more attractive than first baseman Kim Beom-seok,” and added, “Currently, the starting catcher is Park Dong-won, but Kim Beom-seok should take his place as the starting catcher someday.”

Coach Yeom also plans to give Kim Beom-seok more opportunities in the first team. He said, “After Park Dong-won plays as the starting catcher for 3-4 years, Kim Beom-seok should become the starting catcher. Only then can LG’s future become bright,” he said. “Next year, Kim Beom-seok will play catcher and first baseman. “Starting in 2025, we plan to hire Kim Beom-seok as a backup catcher behind Park Dong-won,” he explained. 19가이드03