NC coach Kang In-kwon’s gaze turns to ‘No. 2’.
On the 18th (Korean time), coach Kang In-kwon met with this magazine during spring training held at Reed Park Baseball Fields in Tucson, Arizona, USA and said, “I am worried about the second batting order.” Among the NC hitters스포츠토토, Son Ah-seop (231 at-bats) and Lee Myung-gi (120 at-bats) were the ones who played the most at bats in the second batting order last year. Lee Myung-ki recently transferred to the Hanwha Eagles, and Son A-seop emerged as a strong second alternative. Coach Kang In-kwon also had Son Ah-seop in mind as the second hitter.
However, a variable occurred. Son Ah-seop, who had been conducting individual training before the spring camp, was greedy for long hits. Son A-seop is experimenting with improving his contact and long hitting ability at the same time by modifying his swing trajectory. Director Kang said, “I changed my batting form because I wanted to hit a lot of mid-range throughout the year. this worry,” he said.
The second hitter candidate Kang In-kwon is considering is catcher Park Se-hyeok. Park Se-hyeok is a free agent (FA) recruited in November of last year to fill the transfer void of Eui-ji Yang (Doosan Bears). Expectations within the team are so high that he signed a contract for 4 years and up to 4.6 billion won (down payment of 1.8 billion won, annual salary of 2.4 billion won, and incentive of 400 million won). However, Park Se-hyeok’s second batting order requires a decision. The position of catcher, which requires a lot of physical strength, is also a variable, but there is little ‘experience’.
Park Se-hyeok played 402 at-bats for the Doosan Bears last year, but there was no second batting order. He was mainly responsible for the bottom batting line, placing in No. 6 (168 plate appearances) and No. 7 (88 plate appearances). Park Se-hyeok, who debuted in the first team in 2012, has only 18 at-bats in the second batting order in his career (2278 at-bats). Director Kang In-kwon, who is looking for a replacement resource for Son A-seop, said, “Se-hyuk has the ability to approach pitchers on the left. He also makes a lot of hits in front of the right field, so I’m thinking that way.”
NC is likely to have Park Min-woo as the leadoff. The second hitter should form a table setter with Park Min-woo and break through the attacking path. Manager Kang In-kwon said, “The second hitter also has to play the leadoff role. I think I need to exercise with the center batting line,” he said.