Kia Tigers backup catcher Han Jun-soo, 24, is showing no signs of regretting his batting talent. He has already had his second three-hit game of the season, but along with the three-hit game came homework.
Starting in the No. 8 spot in the lineup against the Lotte Giants in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League regular season on Wednesday at Sajik Stadium in Busan, Han Jun-soo went 3-for-6 with a home run and two RBIs to lead his team to a 13-5 victory.
With runners on second and third with no outs in the top of the first inning, Han hit a two-run double to center field to load the bases. It was the prelude to a five-run second inning. In the sixth inning, he led off with a single up the middle to drive in another run. In the seventh, he dropped a sacrifice bunt, but came back in the eighth with a big hit to left-center to drive in two runs and complete his three-hit game. Han, who was first called up to the first team on June 25, had a three-hit game against SSG on July 5, and it was his first three-hit game in over a month.
After the game, Han Jun-soo said, “I felt comfortable because I got two hits in my first at-bat. If your first at-bat doesn’t go well, it puts a lot of pressure on you. It’s important to hit quickly so that I can feel comfortable in the next at-bat, and it worked out well today.” He laughed.
Even with limited opportunities, he tries to stay calm. “I’m always ready at any time,” Han said. I want to do well in both batting and defense, and I want to help the team,” he said, adding, “If I try to be too good, I make a lot of mistakes, so I try to do the same as I did in the second team.”
The main catcher, Kim Tae-gun, joined the team via trade and has been learning a lot from the process. “We need to train a lot now,” Kim told the younger players. His message is directed at Han Jun-soo. He said, “I heard that you used to be a backup and you trained a lot. I think I should do the same. I think that’s right because a catcher has to know a lot and have to know the situation quickly. Since I didn’t play a lot in the first team, they give me a lot of advice on mentality, pitchers’ pitches, and situations, and that’s enough to help me,” he said.
He also said, “He has the best fighting spirit and leads by example even though he is the senior in the team. I feel like I’m learning well by always following him around.”
Meanwhile, Han Jun-soo is currently playing like Yoon Young-chul’s designated catcher. Kim Tae-gun also needs to rest, so the team is using a combination of Yoon and Han Jun-soo. Until today, Yoon had worn the starting catcher’s mask for four consecutive games. Han Jun-soo’s first three-hit game as a starter was also against SSG on May 5.
On this day, however, Han Jun-soo was given a task to accomplish at the plate. The score was 8-1 going into the fifth inning. However, Yoon faltered in the fifth inning. With one out, he gave up back-to-back singles, giving up four runs. In the end, Yoon was unable to close out the fifth inning with a seven-run lead and was unable to earn the win. Yoon was disappointed, as was Han Jun-soo, who was the catcher with whom Yoon was working.
“The first and fifth innings are important, and I was most disappointed that in the fifth inning, with one out and two strikes against senior Noh Jin-hyuk, a mistake was made and I got a double. I tried to block it as much as possible after that, but I was disappointed and Young-cheol was disappointed,” he said. “But I think it can’t be helped that the batters hit well, and I think we can think of it as a study for me and Young-cheol, and we have homework to do,” he concluded, emphasizing that there are things to improve. 카지노사이트