The number of players named ‘Choi Won-joon’ in the KBO League has increased to three. Following Doosan pitcher Choi Won-jun (29), who is well known to baseball fans, and Sangmu outfielder Choi Won-jun (26) from KIA, Hanwha rookie infielder Choi Won-jun (19) is also preparing for his debut.
Choi Won-joon, a right-handed and left-handed infielder from Cheongdam High School, was nominated by Hanwha in the 71st overall in the 8th round this year. Although he was nominated for the lower round, among the coaches who watched him at Seosan’s rookie camp, the reaction “Why did he come down to the 8th round?”
During the finishing camp held in Daejeon last November, Hanwha general manager Son Hyuk also praised Choi Won-joon, saying, “(Infielders selected in the 2nd and 3rd rounds) Moon Hyun-bin and Choi Min-jun look as good as they do.” Song Gwang-min, who played an active role as a starting third baseman for Hanwha, also praised Choi Won-joon, whom he met through rehabilitation while running a baseball training center in Daejeon, saying, “He has the qualities to become a large infielder in the future.”
The fact that Choi Won-jun went down to the 8th round was largely due to an injury. Early last year in his senior year, his grades dropped after he injured his right ankle. 온라인바카라 However, originally from Cheongju, the local team Hanwha watched Won-Jun Choi carefully and nominated him in the 8th round, expecting his potential. If it grows well, it can become a ‘steel pick’ that was picked up in the lower order.
Choi Won-joon said, “(Last year in May) I was injured with a week left before the Golden Lion National Championships. He looked back at the moment of nomination, saying, “I didn’t expect to be nominated because my grades were so bad in my third year, but it was good to be suddenly selected.”
Choi Won-joon, who is 188cm tall and 85kg tall, showed his long-running power with two homers in 21 high school baseball games last year. He himself said, “I think that long hitting power is my strong point. He was a skinny, bunt-only sprint hitter until middle school. As he entered his freshman year of high school, he had power,” he explained.
His height and shortstop position stand out. He was a third baseman in middle school, but he branched out into shortstop in high school. Shortstops have a hard time taking the first step if they are too tall. Choi Won-joon also said, “His height growth has stopped,” and “He practices a lot of defensive steps. He’s been learning a lot on the technical side since finish camp,” he said.
Choi Won-joon, who spent his childhood in Cheongju, said, “Since I was in the third grade of elementary school, I often came to watch Hanwha baseball with his father. At that time, he dreamed of becoming a baseball player. He liked Tae-gyun Kim the most,” he said. He vowed to do well without losing his original intentions, humbly, confidently with the spirit of a rookie, and not being discouraged.”