“Yoo Gang-nam’s value lies in his framing. He is the best catcher in Korea.”
This is what Minnesota Twins coach Choi Hyun said while talking about catchers in the KBO League during his time with the Lotte Giants.
Coach Choi Hyeon left, but Yoo Kang-nam wore a Lotte uniform. As the pitchers’ physical condition improves, Yoo Kang-nam’s presence is gradually shining.
The catcher is the first fielder, and a deep connection with the pitcher is the most important position. In the Lotte spring camp in Guam, there are 4 catchers including Yoo Kang-nam, Ji Ji-wan, Kang Tae-yul and Lee Jung-hoon and 2 bullpen catchers.
In the morning, he helped fielders practice base running and digested blocking training with coach Choi Kyung-chul shouting at the top of his voice. 메이저사이트
And in the afternoon, he helped the pitchers with their pitching drills. Along with the sound of ‘Pong Pung’ stuck in the mitt, the catchers’ voices shouting “Nice ball!” Unlike the other catchers who wore red protective gear, Yoo Kang-nam was clearly visible in blue protective gear.
Pitchers have focused on conditioning for about 10 days since the start of the camp, but they are gradually increasing the number of pitches. The pitchers, who finished ‘Hell’s conditioning’ with training coach Kim Hyun-wook all morning, started pitching in earnest in the bullpen in the afternoon.
Divided into three groups, the pitchers busily moved to and from the bullpen according to the coaches’ instructions. Pitchers who finished their turn or were resting watched the training from one side.
As the number of pitchers who finished pitching among the pitchers who had small talk increased, the topic naturally shifted to pitching. There were also praises saying, “Who’s ball is really good?”, but the place where the pitchers’ eyes were focused was definitely ‘8 billion FA’ Yoo Kang-nam.
Han Hyun-hee and Kim Won-joong, who are of the same age, are moving as best friends in this camp. When Han Hyun-hee admired, “(Yoo) Gangnam’s meat is amazing,” Kim Won-joong also agreed, saying, “It’s different, but look at how he curves now.” Seo Jun-won also said, “Is it a little low? Is it a little low? I want to, but if Gangnam hyung gets it, it’s a nice ball. Can you make this a strike? There are many times when I wonder. I think it’s really crazy.” Foreign pitchers such as Strayley and Barnes also did not spare a ‘thumbs up’ at Yoo Kang-nam’s meat.
The value of Yoo Kang-nam, who surprised pitchers more, is the reason Lotte is looking forward to the opening of this season.