Choi Hyung-woo (41) of the KIA Tigers in professional baseball made a determination in the second half, recalling the worst game in the first half.룸알바
Choi Hyung-woo started as the No. 6 designated hitter of Nanum All-Star in the “2024 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League” All-Star Game held at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 6th and played 3 hits, 1 home run, 2 RBIs, and 1 run in 4 at-bats. He led Nanum All-Star to a 4-2 victory with a cheerful hit and became the protagonist of the oldest All-Star Game MVP (40 years, 7 months and 4 days).
“Honestly, I came here feeling embarrassed because I was so old when I first came here. I decided to have fun with my family, but I’m glad to receive such a big award,” veteran Choi Hyung-woo said in an interview after the game. “I had little intention (of getting an MVP) since I hit the homer. I just wish I could hit the last RBI and just block the eighth and ninth innings. I told Jeon to block the score, saying he would get in trouble if he scores a point.”
Choi Hyung-woo is the fifth oldest veteran of the KBO League after Choo Shin-soo (SSG), Oh Seung-hwan (Samsung), and Kim Kang-min (Hanwha), who were born in December 1983, and Ko Hyo-joon who was born in February 1983. He recorded a batting average of 311 (2,408 hits in 7,749) with 389 homers, 1615 RBIs, 1273 runs and 19 steals in 2,142 games in the KBO League.
Choi, who plays every year with the mindset that this could be the last year of his career, was confidently selected as the All-Star Best 12 this season by posting a batting average of 286 (85 hits in 297) with 16 homers, 73 RBIs, 49 runs and OPS.882 in 77 games. In an interview before the game, he said, “I really wanted to achieve a successful result in the All-Star Game, thinking that last year was the last year. I didn’t expect you to call me that until this year. Thank you so much,” expressing gratitude to fans and players who voted him an All-Star.
Choi is still leading the team as Kia’s No. 4 hitter. Thanks to Choi’s performance, Kia finished the first half of the league with 48 wins, two draws and 33 losses and a winning percentage of .593. “I am satisfied with the first half as it finished first. Personally and the team, there were many twists and turns, but I am satisfied because it finished first anyway,” Choi said.
Coincidentally, Kia has been destroying the runner-up teams by displaying good performance when it meets the runner-up teams this season. Fans even jokingly said, “You shouldn’t touch the bottom of the tiger.” “I didn’t realize it at first. But it was fun starting from a month ago. If we think about it, we can win when we meet the runner-up. What’s more interesting is that when there is only one or two game difference, we meet the runner-up. From then on, I think we get conscious and play more energetic.”
Kia will hold three consecutive away games against the LG Twins at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul starting on Saturday when the second half of the season begins. LG has 46 wins, two draws and 38 losses with a .548 winning rate this season, ranking second in the 3.5 game gap with KIA. “I think we will meet LG again on the 9th. It will be fun,” Choi said with a smile.
Kia ranks first in the first half of the season, but it is regrettable that it did not have a game. In particular, it is losing ground to Lotte this year. It is losing ground to three wins, one draw and seven losses in its opponent team. Notably, it failed to keep its 13-point lead with a 14-1 lead at the match against Lotte on June 25, allowing its team to come from behind to ultimately secure a 15-15 draw. It is the first time in the KBO league that the team failed to keep its 13-point lead.
“The mood of the team was really bad. It was a portrait collection,” Choi said, recalling the disappointing game. “It was more than a bad atmosphere. I wondered if it was even possible to make sense beyond just a bad atmosphere. I felt again that I should not relax when I play against Lotte this year. I have a lot of games left, so I have to work harder.”
On his prospects for the second half of the year, Choi said, “I really don’t know. I will do my best in the second half of the year. I think it will be an interesting game starting from the game on the 9th,” vowing to play well for the rest of the season.