"I want to hit number 6."
This is what Kia Tigers' "hitting master" Choi Hyung-woo (41) said at the inauguration ceremony of his former coach in January 2022. He said it because he thought it would be better for him to support his juniors now. This is because the team can look to the future and Choi Hyung-woo himself can relieve the burden.
That's why Choi Hyung-woo had a sluggish season in 2021, combined with minor injuries and sluggishness. Since then, he has recovered in 2022, and returned as Choi Hyung-woo, who is down from Choi Hyung-woo in 2023 and 2024. Of course, the productivity was lower than in his heyday, but it was an amazing two years considering that he is in his 40s.
However, Choi said similar things over the past year or two when he had free time. Even though he was interviewed by reporters, he often expressed his desire for younger players to be spotlighted more than him. Thus, the final season of his contract worth 2.2 billion won per year is left.
In the 2025 season, which may be the last season, Choi's dream may come true. KIA has made a big decision. It will give up its four-year companionship with Socrates Brito, 32, who has been with him for three years, and recruit Patrick Wisdom, 33, a right-handed giant.
Unlike Socrates, Wisdom is a typical hit man. It is not easy to expect a batting average between late-20s and early-300s like Socrates. Instead, he should not ignore his career of hitting 88 home runs in the Major League. He slowed down by hitting eight home runs in 75 games this year, but hit more than 20 home runs in the Chicago Cubs for the third consecutive year from 2021 to 2023.
Wizdom's batting order is a game against manager Lee Bum-ho. Manager Lee already announced that if a new foreign hitter comes along, he could make some changes to the batting order. The best scenario is to establish himself as the fourth batter. If the team creates strong synergy with existing central hitters such as Kim Do-young, Na Sung-bum and Choi Hyung-woo, Kia's batting lineup will be further upgraded.
If Wisdom establishes itself as No. 4, Choi will finally be able to get out of No. 4 and go down to No. 5 or No. 6 as he said. How strong will Choi's batting lineup be? It means building a central batting line of fear.
Wisdom is not young, but it is not the time for his skills to deteriorate significantly. Matt Davidson (NC Dinos), who is the same age and similar style, hit the jackpot with 46 home runs this season. If Wisdom hits 3 to 40 home runs next year and signs a multi-year contract, KIA has nothing more to want. 온라인카지노
In order to have enough time to not have to put Choi as the center hitter in the long run, it is important for Byun Woo-hyuk, Lee Woo-sung, and Han Jun-su to grow further. As Choi Hyung-woo, Na Sung-bum, and Kim Sun-bin also go from mid to late 30s, the growth of hitters in their 20s and early 30s is essential. If he proves it in practice, Choi could become the sixth hitter of fear.