Doosan Bears’ trade fortune Yang Seok-hwan (32) pledged a year without regrets in the preliminary free agent season. As his wings were broken due to an oblique muscle injury last year, he is determined to regain the title after playing a full season without injury this year.
It was in March 2021 that Yang Seok-hwan first wore a Doosan uniform. After first offering Yang Seok-hwan to Doosan, which needs a first baseman, LG general manager Cha Myeong-seok proposed a trade for Ham Deok-joo in return. Doosan pondered over and over again, and eventually made the decision to hand over left-hander Ham Deok-joo to get first baseman. The two teams, which agreed to exchange Ham Deok-joo and Yang Seok-hwan, carried out a final 2-2 trade with young pitchers such as Chae Ji-sun and Nam-ho.
For Yang Seok-hwan, the move to Doosan was a godsend. This is because he was reborn as a ‘trade blessing’ from his first season as the Bears’ fifth first baseman. In 133 games in the 2021 season, he wielded a batting average of 207, 3, 28 home runs and 96 RBIs, erasing the team’s first baseman concerns and contributing to the first 7 consecutive years in the KBO League to advance to the Korean Series.
Unlike the first year, last year was a series of disappointments. A chronic oblique muscle injury recurred from the beginning of the season, and even after returning in May, he suffered from aftereffects, ending the season with a batting average of 2.44, 20 homers and 51 RBIs in 107 games. In addition to Yang Seok-hwan, Doosan suffered sluggish performances by key players such as Kim Jae-hwan and Su-bin Su, for the first time since its founding, suffered humiliation in 9th place.
Yang Seok-hwan, whom I recently met in Jamsil, said, “The biggest thing was injury. It was more regrettable because he had a good start before the injury,” he said. Then, when his brother and I both collapsed, the team’s performance plummeted. It was mentally difficult” as he looked back on the year.
The most important part of this offseason is injury prevention. In order to strengthen the internal oblique muscle, which is prone to injury recurrence, 헤라카지노 various exercises are being performed at the same time. Yang Seok-hwan said, “I am trying to increase muscle flexibility, and I am focusing on strengthening my core through Pilates. He is also doing rotational movements step by step. The exercise is going well,” he said.
Prior to the 2023 season, Doosan changed the manager and recruited Yang Eui-ji, the largest free agent fish, and declared the so-called New Bears. Coincidentally, both changes are related to Yang Seok-hwan. First of all, manager Lee Seung-yeop was the best home run hitter in Korea during his active career. In addition, with Yang Eui-ji joining Yang Seok-hwan, the burden on the center batting line can be reduced compared to last year.
Yang Seok-hwan said, “I think I will have a lot of time to talk with the coach at spring camp. He tries to ask a lot of questions,” he said. He expressed his expectation, saying, “I want to ask how to push and hit far and the number of goals.”
Regarding the effect of joining Eui-ji Yang, “Before that, there was a good number 3 called (Park) Kun-woo, but last year it was difficult because there was no good player in number 3. The burden of 4 or 5 was great. It would have been fine if either one of them had endured, but they collapsed together.” But (Yang) Eui-ji hyung, a good player, has come and I am looking forward to it.”
Another reason why the upcoming season is special for Yang Seok-hwan. It is because he left Shinil High School and Dongguk University and joined the pros in the 2014 LG 2nd 3rd round 28th place, and before he knew it, he was on the verge of becoming a free agent. If you spend the 2023 season healthy, you can be rewarded with money for your performance so far, as other players did in this Stove League.
However, over face is prohibited. Yang Seok-hwan said, “The situation won’t change much even if I put my energy into it and do it for a year. I think it has already been decided to some extent,” he said. “I try not to care too much about FA. I will go without missing out on what I can do at this moment.”
To Yang Seok-hwan, Doosan is a special team. After he was discharged from the management, he repeatedly wandered, and with the transfer, he wrote a career-high home run (28) in one season, and he had a place of his own as the 5th hitter-1st baseman. Yang Seok-hwan’s goal is to get rid of the regret of his injury last year and receive good energy again to be recognized for his skills in the market.
Yang Seok-hwan said, “The Doosan transfer satisfaction is 100 points. He came and gave me a good chance and I did well. So he got a lot of love. It is a team that is a good environment for baseball,” he said. “This year, the team has changed, so we have to adapt accordingly. An important season is ahead, and I will spend the year without regrets by preparing the best I can.”