The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced Tuesday its regular season opening entries for 10 teams. The KBO League will hold its opening games of the 2024 season at five stadiums across the country on Sunday. The opening entry is 28 players per team.고수익알바
What stands out is the “lucky” rookie players who made the opening entry. A total of 13 of the rookies who joined this year made the opening entry. Two players, Jung Ji-hyun and Kim Hyun-jong, were selected for the LG Twins, Won Won-hyun for the KT Wiz, Park Ji-hwan for the SSG Landers, Kim Taek-yeon for the Doosan Bears, and Jeon Mir for the Lotte Giants. Hwang Young-mook, a former independent baseball team, was selected for the surprise entry, instead of Hwang Joon-seo in the first round for the Hanwha Eagles. The NC Dinos, Samsung Lions, and KIA Tigers do not have any rookie players in the entry.
However, the Kiwoom Heroes alone included six rookies in the entry. Pitchers Kim Yoon-ha, Son Hyun-ki, Jeon Joon-pyo, Kim Yeon-joo, infielder Ko Young-woo and Lee Jae-sang are the main characters. It is quite an unconventional decision. Since the records were compiled by the KBO in 2007, a team of rookies has never been selected for the opening entry. Except for the early days of professional baseball, it is very rare. Except for Ko Young-woo, all of them are high school graduates.
Of course, all the rookies selected for the entry are promising players. Jeon Joon-pyo, a Seoul High School pitcher, was a first-round pick that he secured through a Choi Won-tae trade with the LG Twins last year. He is the most advanced among rookies in the selection order. Kim Yoon-ha, who was named after Jeon Joon-pyo (8th ranking) in the first round, was also considered one of the ace pitchers from his days at Jangchung High School. Lee Jae-sang and Son Hyun-ki in the second round, Kim Yeon-joo in the third round, and Ko Young-woo in the fourth round. Most of the rookies selected for the top round joined the opening entry.
It is also the reality of Kiwoom. To call it a risky gamble, this season truly is the time to discover and nurture new faces. The aftermath was huge when Choi Won-tae was traded last year, Ahn Woo-jin joined the military after surgery, and Lee Jung-hoo advanced to the Major League. Even mentioning the possibility of reinforcing his team’s strength was overshadowed. The only comfort was the return of Cho Sang-woo and the recruitment of veteran infielder Choi Joo-hwan from the second draft.
All six rookies on board the opening entry were ones who showed their faces in an exhibition game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Four pitchers (Kim Yeon-ju, Kim Yoon-ha, Son Hyun-ki, and Jeon Joon-pyo) pitched in the middle of the game, while Ko Young-woo and Lee Jae-sang played as starting second baseman and shortstop, respectively.
There are many voices predicting Kiwoom’s strength to be at the bottom of the list this season, but in a situation where Jang Jae-young and Lee Joo-hyung are injured, they have to find the “second Lee Jung-hoo” and “second Ahn Woo-jin” again, giving prospective players a lot of opportunities to play in order to see the result once again. The entry of six rookie players into the opening entry is a point where they face the reality of the Heroes.