Kiwoom Heroes Lee Jung-hoo (24) will take the first step to advance to the major leagues in earnest. We plan to have a detailed conversation with Kiwoom, our club, about the next step after the 2023 season.
At the 2022 Golden Glove Awards Ceremony held on the 9th, Lee Jung-hoo took first place in the outfielder category and held the Golden Glove for 5 consecutive years. His performance this season was a batting average of 0.349, 23 home runs, 113 RBIs, 85 runs, an on-base percentage of 0.421, and a slugging percentage of 0.575 in 142 games. Not only did he win the batting title for two consecutive years, but he also swept first place in hits, RBIs, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage, winning five crowns.
Among baseball players, there is already a saying that “the domestic stage is narrow for Lee Jung-hoo.” Naturally, talk of going abroad is also rising to the surface.
Lee Jung-hoo, who made his professional debut in 2017, played almost all full-time for six seasons until the 2022 season. In 2018, when he only played 109 games due to a shoulder injury, the number of registration days was only 141, but thanks to his steady performance as a national team member from 2017, he easily filled 145 days of registration with the first team through national team points.
In the KBO League, high school graduates must play 7 seasons before they can challenge overseas through the posting system (private competitive bidding). Ryu Hyun-jin (35, Toronto Blue Jays) and Kim Ha-seong (27, San Diego Padres) entered the major leagues through the posting system.메이저사이트
If Lee Jeong-hoo plays full-time in the 2023 season, he can challenge the major leagues he has been dreaming of by qualifying for posting like Hyun-jin Ryu and Ha-seong Kim. He has consistently expressed his will to advance overseas through the posting system, saying, “I want to challenge the major leagues as soon as possible, even when I am a little bit younger.”
This can be a huge benefit for growing. Kiwoom earned considerable transfer fees by sending Kang Jung-ho, Park Byeong-ho, and Kim Ha-seong to the major leagues through the posting system. Kang Jeong-ho won 5 million 2015 dollars (based on the current exchange rate, about 6.54 billion won), Park Byung-ho received 12.85 million dollars (about 16.8 billion won), and Kim Ha-seong won 5.525 million dollars (about 7.23 billion won).
Lee Jung-hoo, who will be eligible for posting in his mid-20s, is also expected to give Kiwoom a posting amount comparable to them. For Kiwoom, it could be a ‘beautiful farewell’ in many ways for Lee Jung-hoo to go abroad through the posting system rather than as a free agent.