Hanwha Eagles picked up SSG Landers franchise star Kim Kang-min (41) in the second round of the draft.
Hanwha selected Sang-gyu Lee (LG) in the 1st round, Min-seo Bae (NC) in the 3rd round, and Kang-min Kim (SSG) in the 4th round in the ‘2024 KBO 2nd Draft’ held at The K Hotel in Yangjae-dong, Seoul on the 22nd.
What stands out is the recruitment of veteran center fielder Kim Kang-min, who represents SSG. 지울프-토토
Kang-min Kim is a SSG franchise star who recorded a batting average of .274 ri (1,470 hits in 5,364 at-bats), 138 home runs, 674 RBIs, and an OPS of .750 in 1,919 games in the KBO League.
Last year, in the Korean Series, he won MVP with a batting average of .375 (3 hits in 8 at-bats), 2 home runs, 5 RBIs, and an OPS of 1.500 in 5 games.
He is 41 years old this year, and it is not strange for him to retire, but Kim Kang-min achieved not bad results this year as well
with a batting average of .226 (31 hits in 137 at bats) in 70 games, 2 home runs, 7 RBIs, 20 runs, 2 stolen bases, and an OPS of .627. The center fielder’s defense
which was considered the best in the league during its heyday, is still the same even after many years.
He was a player who symbolized SSG to the point where he was mentioned as the first candidate to be retired after the SK Wyverns were acquired by SSG
but he made a surprise transfer through this 2nd draft.
Hanwha said, “We judged that Kim Kang-min has the skills to strengthen outfield depth and serve as a pinch hitter on defense.
He also explained the reason for nominating Kim Kang-min, saying
I shared a lot of sympathy with the young outfielders on our team and judged that he could have a positive impact on their growth.”
Lee Sang-gyu, who was drafted in the first round, is a right-handed pitcher who joined LG in the 2nd 7th round (70th pick) of the 2015 rookie draft.
His career records are 44 games (45 innings), 2 wins, 3 losses, 1 hold, 4 saves, and an ERA of 6.20, although he does not have much first-team experience.
He recorded an ERA of 2.35 in 8 games (7⅔ innings) this year.
Hanwha revealed the reason for nominating Lee Sang-gyu first, saying
Lee Sang-gyu is a player with a speed of mid-140 km/h, and we nominated him with the expectation that he would be able to strengthen our bullpen depth.”
Bae Min-seo, who was called in the 3rd round, is a sidearm pitcher who joined NC as a pick in the 2nd 4th round (37th place) of the 2019 rookie draft.
In the first team, he recorded a total of 55 games (63⅓ innings), 1 win, and an ERA of 5.68.
He performed somewhat poorly this year, with an ERA of 6.75 in 6 games (6⅔ innings).
Hanwha said, “In the third round, Bae Min-seo’s sidearm style was highly evaluated for his strength in change-up against left-handed hitters.
In particular, he judged that he could play that role during Kang Jae-min’s hiatus,” he explained.
Hanwha, which recruited three new players, said, “We tried to proceed as we had consistently discussed with the field prior to the nomination.
At the draft site, we focused on preparing for free agent compensation players and strengthening depth
he said, giving a general review of the second draft with a focus on strengthening power.
Hanwha, which recruited Ahn Chi-hong for up to 7.2 billion won in 4+2 years in the free agent market, also recruited Kim Kang-min
who won the Korean Series five times (2007-2008, 2010, 2018, 2022) in the second draft, improving the team’s performance. made up for the lack of experience.
With promising young players such as Moon Dong-ju and Noh Si-hwan leading the team
expectations for next season have grown even more with the addition of these veterans