The Lotte Giants, who strengthened the depth of the team as a releaseee last winter, recruited outfielder Kook Hae-seong (34), another resource. After a long wait, he returned to the professional stage and could not hide his joy.
On the 22nd, Lotte announced that it had recruited outfielder Kuk Hae-seong. He joined the Doosan Bears as a foster player in 2008 and debuted in the first team in 2012, recording a batting average of 0.238 in 214 games over a total of 8 seasons.
Kuk Hae-seong showed off his batting ability by achieving double-digit home runs twice (2014, 2019) in the Futures League. In addition, in the 2016 season, he played a part in the outfield with a batting average of 0.278, 4 homers, and an OPS of 0.798 in 58 games for the first team. Lotte said, “As a switch hitter who can create long hits, we judged that Kuk Hae-seong would be helpful in strengthening outfield depth and utilizing pinch hitters.”
Kuk Hae-seong, who was contacted by Star News after the announcement of joining, expressed his feelings, saying, “I would like to say thank you so much for choosing me from Lotte, a prestigious club with passion.”
Kuk Hae-seong applied for a Futures League FA after the end of the 2021 season, but was not called by all 10 clubs, including the original team Doosan. Eventually, in 2022, he built up his body by playing for Seongnam Magpies, an independent club.
Kook Hae-seong, who confessed, “I felt bad when I was out of shape for about a week after the contract wasn’t finished.” looked back at
Kuk Hae-seong, who became completely free after not being able to sign a contract for one season, finally found his team. “On Friday (19th), Lotte contacted me saying, ‘Let’s see you train,’” Kuk Hae-seong said. Lotte, who complimented him by saying, “I made a good body,” is said to have presented the contract to Kook Hae-seong the same day.
Kuk Hae-seong, who came back to the professional stage, said, “It is a precious opportunity to return to the professional stage. I was not thrilled because I have been in the professional club for over 10 years, but now that the opportunity has arrived, I will work hard to prepare well and show all the plays I can do, and I promise to repay you with grades.” I thought a lot,” he said.
Kuk Hae-seong suffered serious injuries several times while at Doosan, causing fans to feel sorry for him. When asked about his physical condition, he explained, “I’m fine. I was playing games or training in 100 percent condition.”
Parting with a Doosan fan who gave him love for a long time was a regrettable part for Kuk Hae-seong. He said, “I’ve been at Doosan for 14 years and I’ve only received love, but I’m so sorry that I couldn’t satisfy you.” He then expressed his gratitude, saying, “Isn’t Doosan as passionate as Lotte? I want to convey that I am proud and grateful that I have been a Doosan player up until now, while keeping the fact that I have received a lot of love.”
Fortunately, there are many familiar faces in the new team, Lotte. There are outfielder Ahn Kwon-soo and pitcher Hyun Do-hoon, who ate together during the Doosan 2nd Army, and pitcher Yoon Myeong-jun, born in 1989 and belonging to the same agent. In addition, pitching coach Bae Young-soo also played with Doosan as a player. Kook Hae-seong said with a smile, “I’m grateful for any team, but it’s still better.”
Now, Kuk Hae-seong plays baseball in a new environment.먹튀검증 On the day of the entrance test, he watched a large number of spectators enter and said, “I was really surprised. Seeing the people who came to watch baseball outside, I felt that they really loved baseball, and I worked hard to live up to that, so I showed them not to be embarrassed as a Lotte player. I’ll give it to you,” he said.