“No, first of all, he’s that. Hamstrings. Just that, that’s the biggest worry.”
Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung opened his speech on the 4th while talking about Son Ho-young, who had a multi-homer four-run performance the previous day (3rd) in Ulsan. Son Ho-young came out as the fifth batter in the game against the LG Twins at Munsu Baseball Stadium in Ulsan on the 3rd and recorded 2 hits, 2 home runs and 4 RBIs in 4 at-bats.
He hit his first double-digit homerun in the first inning and his first multi-homerun in the eighth inning. In defense, he started as a third baseman and finished the game as a second baseman.
Manager Kim Tae-hyung continued, “I’ve got a few hits for myself. As soon as I first arrived, I started to get a little more aggressive. Now I have to watch some balls. Players tend to be in a hurry when they face bad conditions. I don’t think I can take that shape because I like it now. I think I should say that I got the hang of it now.”
Son Ho-young, who added two homers on Thursday, posted a batting average of 0.318 in 58 games, 11 homers and 48 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.931. The promising player whom LG had expected but had given up due to injury has become a completely different player following the trade.
Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop of the LG Twins considered Son Ho-young an important player who can change the color of a team that mainly focuses on left-handed hitters since last year. Although he is not a starting player who plays often, he sees Son as a player who has a presence corresponding to his. However, he changed his mind due to Son’s frequent injuries. He decided that he needs to manage playing time more. This is why he was able to decide to trade Son Ho-young for the first time in five games after the season opened, and bring in promising pitcher Woo Kang-hoon.
Son displayed potential by playing in 23 games in 2020, his first year as a member of LG. However, he played in only 27 games last year, following eight in 2021 and 36 in 2022. Ninety-four games in the first division for four years. In an interview after the game on Thursday, Son recalled his dream of playing in 100 games in a season.
- It’s the season where you play the most games since your debut, did you have pride in yourself.
“I don’t feel that way because I haven’t played yet. I just want to play more. I think if you really play full time, you’ll know what’s going to happen then. It’s not full time this year either.”
- But he said he wanted to play at least 100 games.
“I still think so.”
As of Tuesday, Lotte has played 100 games, the fewest among the 10 teams. With 44 games to go, Son may still be able to fulfill his dream. He has 42 more games to play 스포츠토토. The remaining homework is managing his hamstring, which coach Kim Tae-hyung also emphasized. Therefore, Son is preparing more cautiously every day.
Son Ho-young said, “I asked the trainer coaches questions, and they are doing so well. They are doing so well that I feel like it’s too much and annoying. I think I can do it until the end.” He also said, “I’m going to drink a lot of water. I heard from somewhere that my muscles should not dry. They say that it’s not good to drink a lot of water and stretch too much, so I do it in moderation.”