"You can swing and swing. If you change your mind..." KIA manager Lee Woo-sung's advice to boost his long-shot power
"You can swing and swing. If you change your mind..." KIA manager Lee Woo-sung's advice to boost his long-shot power
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The coach advised me to change my mindset that I have to hit the ball
The growth of Lee Woo-sung (KIA Tigers) was helped by the head coach.
KIA, led by head coach Lee Bum-ho, defeated manager Lee Ho-joon's NC Dinos 17-10 in an away match of the 2025 professional baseball KBO League exhibition game held at Changwon NC Park on the 11th. With this, Kia, which avenged its 3-6 defeat by NC on the previous day (10th), recorded one win, one draw and two losses at the same time as winning its first exhibition game.
Lee's performance was stellar. Coming up as a pinch hitter on the day, he launched a home run to help KIA win.
Lee, who was struck out after appearing at the batter's box in place of Choi in the top of the sixth inning, shook off the disappointment in the top of the seventh inning. With the bases loaded with one out, he hit a 146 km fastball on the second pitch by right-handed pitcher Choi Woo-seok, and fired a 115-meter grand slam that flew over the left fence. He hit a solo shot at the top of the fourth inning against Changwon NC D.C. on Saturday, and hit a home run for two consecutive days.
After the game, Lee Woo-sung said with a bright smile, "I think I can play with ease because the coach continued to trust me and give me a chance," adding, "Yesterday and today, we all hit the fast ball in time, and that led to a long shot."
Lee Woo-sung, who has been wearing KIA's uniform since the 2019 season after passing through NC after being designated by Doosan Bears as the 15th overall player in the second round in 2013, is a player with a strong batting ability. He had a batting average of 0.266 (360 hits in 1,353 times at bat) and 28 homers and 177 RBIs in his career of 566 games until last year, with an on-base plus slugging percentage of 0.711.
However, he was somewhat disappointed in his ability to produce long balls. Since his debut, he has never recorded a double-digit home run in a single season. The nine home runs he posted last year were career high.
He sweated during the off-season to improve his slugging capability. At the spring camp held in Irvine, California, the U.S., and Okinawa, Japan, he was named MVP along with pitchers Hwang Dong-ha, Kim Do-hyun, and outfielder Park Jung-woo. He also garnered home runs for two consecutive days in away games in Changwon from Friday to Sunday, signaling his stellar performance in the future.
Lee's growth came from the coach's advice. "During the camp, the coach advised me to change my mindset that I have to hit the ball in the right direction," Lee said. "Coach Hong Se-wan also told me to hit the bottom of the ball consciously to make it float, and those parts seem to have helped me a lot." 안전놀이터
Lee's mission this season is heavy. He mostly played first base last year, but will return to his original position as an outfielder this year. New foreign hitter Patrick Wisdom's main position is at first base. Manager Lee Bum-ho envisions Lee as the main left fielder. Under these circumstances, if Lee shows strong slugging capability, Kia will be able to increase its scoring ability. Will Lee be able to play a key role in KIA's batting lineup by sending many hits out of the fence in this year's regular season.