Kang Min-ho (38), a 20-year-old catcher with 6 Golden Gloves and a splendid career in the national team.
I forgot my age. A good start. In the second game of the opening, he became the main character of a thrilling come-from-behind victory with a decisive shot.
The second game of the season against NC held on the 2nd at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu. Samsung fell behind 0-6 until the beginning of the 3rd inning as Suarez, the starter they trusted, collapsed in the early stages. A losing game. 안전놀이터
However, neither the players nor the bench gave up.
The bullpen was activated from the 4th inning and the number of wins increased. During the time the Lee Seung-hyun duo earned by 4 scoreless innings, the batters were busy moving.
Koo Ja-wook’s sacrifice fly in the 3rd inning and Lee Seong-gyu and Kim Dong-yeop’s timely hit in the 4th inning steadily caught up with 3 points.
In the 5th inning, trailing by 3-6, 1 out, 1st and 2nd bases. Kang Min-ho, who was in his third at-bat, simply pulled the high fastball of the left-hander Chang-mo Koo from the national team on the third pitch and passed it over the left fence. After the opening game was sold out, the hit shot thrilled the home fans who filled the 20,000 seats. It was also a decisive home run worthy of a veteran. Samsung, which was encouraged by Kang Min-ho’s home run to tie the game, smiled widely as it won 8-6 come-from-behind victory.
“It was a tough game in the beginning, but I thought that I shouldn’t give up in front of many fans who came for two days. The only thing that was strong last year for Koo Chang-mo was that he hit the last game (3 hits in 3 at-bats). I made a swing to hit the center exactly while subtracting, and it led to good results.”
Despite his age, he is still the owner of one of the best batting powers that can easily jump over the wall with a simple swing. The joke “I’ll show you that I’m still young” doesn’t sound funny.
Prior to this season, Samsung coach Park Jin-man officially declared the abolition of the exclusive catcher system. The principle of “the catcher who is in the best condition goes out”. This is to maximize the limited power.
What kind of mind is Kang Min-ho, who has the most ‘dedicated customers’ such as Buchanan Won Tae-in?
“It’s survival. The third catcher system means that our team doesn’t have a main catcher. I’m not sad at all. Rather, it motivates and stimulates me.”
The infamous hell training was digested without exception. As such, he prepared for the season thoroughly better than ever. The reason for his light body movements from the beginning of the season.
“The fact that I didn’t leave anyone out at the camp motivated me and stimulated me. Even though it’s been two games since the opening, I feel like I’ve gotten healthier rather than improved my skills. I want to go to a Korean series before. (laughs)”