Former national team infielders Kim Jae-ho and Jeong Keun-woo emphasized the importance of ‘defense’ in baseball and told an anecdote about Shohei Ohtani during the 2015 Premier 12 Korea-Japan match.

Kim Jae-ho recently appeared on the YouTube channel ‘Jeong Geun-woo’s Baseball Life ‘and pointed out that “in defense, the catcher accounts for 30%, the center fielder accounts for 20%, and the keystone combination of the second baseman and shortstop accounts for 50%,” and that “these 50 are not functioning properly in baseball these days.” He continued, “Breathing is so important that the second baseman needs to know what the shortstop feels, and the shortstop needs to know what the second baseman feels,” adding that “because we rely on data baseball, the players’ ability to make their own judgments and apply their skills is declining.”

He also expressed regret, saying, “There is a lack of basic defensive training to the point where people say that it is the first time they are learning how to play catch after turning pro,” and “As the trend of focusing on offense has taken hold, there has been a strong tendency to win through hitting rather than defense.”

Jeong Geun-woo also agreed, saying, “There were players like senior Kim Min-jae who contributed to the team through defense even though they were weak at bat,” and “It may be too much to ask a shortstop with a.900 defense to hit.300.” He added, “It is also true that expectations have become abnormally high with the emergence of players like Kang Jung-ho and Kim Ha-seong who are capable of both defense and offense.”

On this day, the two also brought up the story of the 2015 WBSC Premier 12 match against Japan, where they played together.Kim Jae-ho laughed and said, “I wasn’t bullied by Ohtani, but I made a mistake because I was nervous,” and recalled, “In the 9th inning, I just prayed in the bullpen for the hyungs to do well.” Jeong Keun-woo said, “Ohtani changed a lot after that Korea-Japan match,” and “Before that, he was just fast, but after that, he even had control.We were the catalyst for Ohtani’s growth.”

On that day’s broadcast, veteran infielders honestly shared their personal experiences with the flow and changes of baseball, as well as advice they wanted to give to their juniors, which resonated with fans.

Photo = YouTube channel ‘Jung Geun-woo’s Baseball Life’
Reporter Lee com -bi, Donga.com misty82@donga

This article is automatically translated using Google AI. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let us know at allkstar@donga.com.