"You can't aim for a 50% on-the-job rate"…The On-base King, who is tired of hitting long balls, focuses on making strong pitches

"You can't aim for a 50% on-the-job rate"…The On-base King, who is tired of hitting long balls, focuses on making strong pitches

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LG Twins outfielder Hong Chang-ki is the best on-base catcher for two consecutive years in the 2023 season (0.444) and last year (0.447), showing off his presence. He is committed to continuing his stellar performance in the new season as well. He is trying to maintain his on-base percentage to a certain extent and increase his slugging capability. The move is aimed at improving his performance.카지노사이트

Before departing for Arizona, the U.S., where the first spring camp was held, Hong told reporters on April 23 that he had no actual on-base percentage target in mind. "I have never thought about it in terms of numbers. I think we should start the season based on around 40 percent," he said. "I don't think we can aim for a 50% on-base percentage. Since I hit 440 percent last year, I think I should try to do something similar."

Last year, Hong posted career high. He had a batting average of 0.336 (176 hits in 524 times at bat) with five homers, 73 RBIs and 10 steals (OPS) of 0.857 in 139 games during the regular season. After the season, he also received the on-base plus slugging award in the right field category. He also received the defense award for the second consecutive year.

After the season, he also participated in the "2024 World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Premier 12" held in Taipei, Taiwan. As a leadoff player for the national team, he played in all five games and recorded a batting average of 0.263 (five hits in 19 at-bats) with a two-run OPS of 0.654, marking the first time as a national team member.

His salary has also significantly increased due to his outstanding performance. The salary has been raised from 510 million won (51 million U.S. dollars) last year to 650 million won (620,000 dollars) this year. This is the highest among non-FA players in his team.

On the salary increase, Hong said, "It's a very pleasant amount. I'm very grateful that the team took great care of me. I also heard it was the highest among non-FA players in my team. I think I need to do better," adding, "I think it would be nice if I don't deduct it from the current amount. As much as I receive, I think I need to do better, so I try to prepare better."

Hong's 2024 season was perfect. He won the Career High award, and his salary went up. However, he was not satisfied. It was a season that left a strong impression, but he pointed out a point to go further. He put all his energy into the offseason to reduce the proportion of ground balls.

"I have tried to increase the ratio of strong and long balls since the winter," Hong said. "Last year, there were many ground balls. There were many single hits and many balls going to ground balls, so we prepared a lot to increase the ratio (of balls hit by flying balls). I felt that I needed to rotate fast to send a strong ball, so I did a lot of spinning exercises. It was a very satisfactory offseason for me. I don't know what it would be like to train in the spring camp, so I think I have to go and check."

"Personally, I thought I wouldn't get the defense award because I had a lot of disappointing plays, but I was really grateful that you picked me. I think it would be good to show better performances and receive it. I want to do well this year and receive it three times in a row. We have separate training sessions for defense, so I think we can prepare well along with batting practice," he added.

It is the LG lineup that Hong Chang-ki should support again this year. Austin Dean, Moon Bo-kyung, Oh Ji-hwan and Kim Hyun-soo, who are behind him, should make a breakthrough as the spearhead of offense. Will Hong, the core player of LG's batting lineup, be able to continue his performance as expected.