Chan-eui, prepare well for the opening game"…Will he play a great role as a 'Banz sniper' in the chance that came to the forgotten exhibition game home run king
Chan-eui, prepare well for the opening game"…Will he play a great role as a 'Banz sniper' in the chance that came to the forgotten exhibition game home run king
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LG Twins manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said this to outfielder Song Chan-eui ahead of the NC Dinos match of the "2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO Exhibition Game" held at Jamsil Stadium on the 17th.스포츠토토
LG will play the opening game of the "2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League" against the Lotte Giants at Jamsil Stadium on the 22nd. Song Chan-eui has been confirmed for a position in a situation where he had to form a 28-man entry for the opening game to cover up the bad seats. He will not stop there, but will play on the ground with the honor of starting the opening game.
Last year, Song made strides in batting from the closing camp to the spring camp and exhibition games, and captured Yeom's heart. He posted a batting average of 0.261 (six hits in 23 times at bat) and five RBIs and one stolen base (OPS) of 0.675 in nine exhibition games. Long balls, which were previously called Song's strength, disappeared, but he showed off his on-base ability by hitting and walking, recording a high on-base percentage of 0.414.
Yeom thinks of Song Chan-ui as the starting pitcher Charlie Barnes, the starting pitcher of the Lotte Giants who will face off in the opening game. Barnes is nicknamed "left-handed pitcher + grifter" as a left-handed pitcher, and has outstanding opponent teams. He will be given the chance as the first card to replace left-handed hitter Moon Sung-joo, who recently returned after recovering from back pain.
"I will start the opening game of Song Chan-ui's night. Way to go. This is not an opportunity that comes all the time. I will notify you in advance," coach Yeom said with a bright smile.
Song Chan-eui is preparing for the opening game with extraordinary determination to meet Yeom's expectations. He said, "The coach gave me a chance, but it's up to me to make it. I'll prepare well. I went out twice in 2022 and 2023, but it was always bad (a total of five hits and one RBI). I'm going to prepare to do it a little differently this year."
Three years ago at this time, Song hit six home runs during an exhibition game to win the title of "home run king in a trial game." He received high expectations as a promising player with a long shot, but failed to take advantage of his opportunity as he fell into a deep slump.
Song Chan-eui, who may be frustrated, but did not give up, made changes by maximizing his contact ability instead of hitting long balls. And this increased the batting accuracy and produced steady results in the offseason.
Song Chan-eui said, "Before, I tried to hit every ball hard. There were many fouls, and I started the count against him. Now that we have the ABS (automatic ball determination system), we think about how many balls we can hit by dividing the number of balls we can hit. As I hit balls that we can hit, I think it fits well with the bat," adding, "I'm not a batter who hits a lot of home runs." I tend to prefer hitting and double more than homeruns. I don't think about not having long balls. I am focusing on persistent play and not dying easily at bat. If the result doesn't come out, I can't help but doubt it, but as the result comes out little by little, I have more confidence in what I am doing now."
To get an uncommon chance, he needs to surpass Barnes as a starter at Lotte. Barnes is one of the best starting pitchers in the league, having played in the KBO League for four years since the last 2022 season. Song Chan-ui needs to produce a result against Barnes, who is unfamiliar with him for the first time.
Song Chan-eui said, "(Kim) Hyun-soo or (Hong) Chang-ki told me to watch a lot of Barnes pitching videos. I will analyze the video and keep thinking about what I can do and prepare," he said. "It would be nice to hit well against all pitchers, but I think the manager wants a good result against left-handed pitchers. I also want to prepare a lot against left-handed pitchers because I have to go in the direction the team needs to fit that idea."
Finally, Song Chan-eui said, "I think I just need to not damage the team. I will focus on how I can help and whether the team will win, rather than what I am good at. My goal is to be good at what I can do."