Choo Shin-soo, 42, who announced his retirement from active duty after the 2024 season, has decided to postpone his retirement ceremony until next year. With SSG engaged in fierce competition until the end of this season, it was an extraordinary decision made for the team.메이저사이트
The SSG Landers club said on the 20th that “Choo Shin-soo’s retirement ceremony will be held next season.”
The SSG club explained, “As a result of our agreement with Choo Shin-soo, we have decided to postpone the retirement ceremony until next season so that the team can focus first on the game at a time when the team is currently having a very important time in the competition for entering baseball in the fall.” SSG then stressed, “The club will also prepare to hold a retirement ceremony with many fans next season.”
Choo is a living legend of Korean baseball, which is being evaluated as the “G.O.A.T. of all time.” Choo entered the U.S. market by signing a contract with the Seattle Mariners in 2001, and made his Major League debut in 2005. After playing for the Cleveland Guardians, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Texas Rangers, he returned to the Korean league in 2021. Choo played in 1,652 games during 16 seasons of the big league, posting a batting average of 0.275, 1671 hits, 218 homers, 782 RBIs, 961 runs, 157 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS).
Choo is the first Korean batter to be named an All-Star in the Major League. He was the first Asian to hit 30-20 homers and 20 steals in 2009. He is also the first Asian batter to have a cycling hit (2015) and most RBIs (782 RBIs). He was also the first Asian batter to hit the record of 218 homeruns (218 homeruns) by an Asian batter before Shohei Ohtani broke the record recently.
Since joining the newly founded SSG Landers in 2021, Choo has played many roles as a dugout leader. Notably, he made remarks based on his belief in poor facilities at Jamsil Stadium in his first year as a member of the team, which had a significant impact on improving facilities. In March that year, Choo said, “It is regrettable that there is no batting cage (in-house) for batters to practice batting. There is not enough treatment space for players to receive physical care. There is no place to receive hot water. I hope Korean baseball will improve in that regard soon.” Afterwards, Jamsil Stadium was able to have better facilities through remodeling work. He also became a model for many baseball players through various donation and social rehabilitation activities.
In December last year, Choo announced that he would retire after finishing his professional baseball career with the 2024 season. “I agonized a lot with my family during the off-season. Whenever I did, I could feel SSG, fans’ support, and more than anything else, younger players. I thought that my love for baseball and the team was great, so I agonized over my career path with the team,” Choo said. “The new coach (Lee Sung-yong) needed me and respected my opinion. Next year’s performance is important, but I want to contribute to the team by sharing my experiences and thoughts by training with younger players at the Futures team whenever possible depending on the team situation.” He also conveyed to the team his intention to donate his contract with the minimum annual salary (30 million won) and full annual salary.
Since the end of July, Choo has held a retirement signing event for the last away series, and has been working with fans of nine teams. On the 19th, he also showed his warm heart to serve dinner and gifts to about 150 club officials. Initially, the SSG club was preparing for a grand retirement ceremony. It was to honor Choo Shin-soo, who had played for SSG for four years and devoted himself to Korean baseball. However, as the team has recently engaged in a fierce battle for the semifinals, it has decided to postpone the retirement ceremony until next year.
As of Tuesday, SSG ranks sixth in the league with 66 wins, 68 losses and two draws. It has 1.5 games to go against fifth-ranked KT Wiz (69 wins, 68 losses and two draws). It is in a good mood as it has won four consecutive games. Notably, if it wins the fateful showdown with KT on Monday, it can instantly narrow its gap to 0.5 games. Considering such circumstances, Choo and SSG have decided to postpone his retirement ceremony until next year. It is his dedication and determination to the team. “We will prepare to host the retirement ceremony for Choo Shin-soo next season with many fans,” an SSG official said.
Meanwhile, Choo Shin-soo had a batting average of 0.282, five homers and 37 RBIs this season, while playing only 77 games due to shoulder injuries. He has not been able to play in the game since the game against Hanwha Eagles on the 10th. Since the 2021 season, he has played in 438 games in four KBO League seasons, with a batting average of 0.263 (396 hits in 1504) with 54 homers, 70 doubles, five triples, 205 RBIs and 266 runs, 51 steals (19 failed), 276 walks, a 42-bodied ball, 370 strikeouts, a slugging percentage of 0.424 and a on-base percentage of 0.388.