On the 21st, around 4:00 pm, the Busan Geumjeong-gu Min Stadium, the practice field for the Geumjeong-gu Baseball Team, was noisy. This place is surrounded by thick bushes across from the Busan tollgate on the Gyeongbu Expressway, so there are no passers-by and it is desolate, but a completely different atmosphere is being created at the playground. The Geumjeongguri Mold Baseball Team, which is training here, reminded me of the ‘Foreign Team of Fear’.
Geumjeong Guri Mold Baseball Team is a ‘new’ club founded in 2019. Although the club has not yet produced a professional player due to less than five years of history, dream trees are growing rapidly. Graduates of the first class are warming up their bats by going on to prestigious baseball high schools, such as Gyeongnam High School, Yongma High School, and Busan Technical High School.
Coach Geon-Han Kim said, “Because we have not yet had the experience of winning a tournament, the intensity of training is higher than that of other little baseball teams.”
Coach Kim was considered a promising pitcher during his active career enough to wear the SK (predecessor of SSG) uniform in 2001 with the first overall pick in the second round. After 15 years of professional life, he is walking the path of a leader at the recommendation of an acquaintance.
Geumjeongguri Baseball Team is the only Busan Little Baseball Team to produce a ‘guide book’ and use it as a textbook for children. That amount alone amounts to 143 chapters. Due to the nature of baseball, which has many rules, it was an idea that coach Kim came up with to educate children at eye level.
Manager Kim explained, “I made a book by putting together the information I collected while listening to baseball lectures by LG Twins coach Yeom Gyeong-yeop.”
The Geumjeongguri Mold Baseball Team has 18 child players (10 athletes, 5 hobbies, and 3 development teams). The upbringing class is a ‘taste’ class of the athlete class, and was specially prepared by coach Kim to attract parents’ attention due to the nature of the new club.
The team’s key players include Yuan Ha, Junwoo Lee, Joohyung Shin, and Taebin Park (14 years old). Ha Yuan is the starting pitcher and third hitter. As a pitcher, he is an orthodox right-hander and freely throws breaking pitches such as sliders and curveballs. As a hitter, he has strong lower body strength compared to his size, allowing him to hit long-range hits. The player I want to be like is Bryce Harper, the leading hitter of the Major League Baseball Phillies. 메이저사이트
Lee Jun-woo is the first hitter at shortstop. His feet are quick and his defense is excellent. Unlike other kids who like to play offense, he likes to play catch and defense. He dreams of becoming the next Kim Ha-seong (San Diego Padres).
Shin Joo-hyung’s 176 cm tall fastball, which he throws down and hits at a maximum speed of 110 km/h, is attractive. His main weapon is his changeup. He is also active as the number 4 hitter in the batting line.
Outfielder Park Tae-bin is from Lotte Giants’ baseball experience class ‘Swing Kids’. Park Tae-bin said, “It is my dream to become like Lotte’s Hwang Seong-bin and Jeon Jun-woo.”