As much as the steady growth curve, the annual salary also rises vertically. LG finishing pitcher Go Woo-seok (25) and setup man Jung Woo-young (24) receive an annual salary of 400 million won in the 2023 season. Last year, as they won the Salvation King and the Hold King, respectively, they rose to the ranks of high-payers according to the club’s high-stakes calculation. Excluding free agent (FA) contracts such as Kim Hyun-soo, Park Hae-min, Park Dong-won, and Oh Ji-hwan, Ko Woo-seok and Jung Woo-young are at the top of the team’s annual salary rankings. In 2022, Go Woo-seok received 270 million won and Jung Woo-young 280 million won.
It has been shaken, but not broken. Jung Woo-young, who was a rookie in 2019, took on Pil Seung-jo within a week of the opening, and Go Woo-seok, a rookie in the third year, took on the finishing pitcher from the end of April. Both of them were quick to identify problems and overcome them, even if they didn’t always go on a winning streak. Occasionally, the balance collapsed and he fell into a difficult game, but he did not stop training and maximized his strengths to become a middle pitcher representing the league.
Above all, his restraint and pitch have continuously risen over the past four years. Jung Woo-young jumped from 146.7 km in 2021 to 151.5 km last year (see Stats) in the average speed of two-seam fastballs. By changing his off-season diet and rigorous weight training, he exceeded his target average velocity. He naturally increased his ground ball percentage and established himself as one of the toughest side arm pitchers in the KBO League. His 35 holds last year is the 3rd most held in a season. With his career 98 holds, he is already ranked 6th in the active hold category.
Ko Woo-seok evolved the slider. Using the slider grip of Jacob deGrom, a pitcher representing the Major League (MLB), as a reference, he tried to make a change, and the average speed of the slider was 146.7 km, an increase of more than 4 km from the previous year. 메이저사이트 He overwhelms batters with a four-seam fastball in the early and mid-150 km range and a slider with a maximum velocity of over 150 km.
As the control of highballs targeting the upper part of the strike zone has also improved, a pitching pattern that can efficiently lift batters has been established. Go Woo-seok is a high-level slider in the KBO league as well as MLB. He became the youngest player to achieve 40 saves, and this year, he is challenging 40 saves over two seasons, which only Oh Seung-hwan achieved.
His mission is just as important as his heightened status and increased salary. Woo-seok Ko and Woo-young Jung boarded the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) team side by side. Since the national team is trying to use irregularities, the winning formula of Jung Woo-young in the 8th and Ko Woo-seok in the 9th may not be reproduced, but there is still a high probability that they will be able to pitch against the most difficult hitter.
The camp process is so busy. He leaves for Arizona on the 30th and starts team training the next day in Scottsdale, Arizona. And from February 14 (local time), he will move to Tucson, Arizona, and enter the national team camp. Prior to the 144-game pennant race schedule, there is a high possibility of winning the WBC and the Hangzhou Asian Games (AG) national team in September during the season.
So I caught the ball early. Ko Woo-seok and Jung Woo-young both started off-season training in November. It is a pace that allows bullpen pitching from the beginning of camp. It is a determination to overcome the killing schedule and catch two rabbits in the national team and the team’s performance. Go Woo-seok said, “As soon as the WBC is over, I start the season with my team. This year, it’s just that the preparation time is fast,” he said. “I want the WBC to do well in the new season as well. I don’t want to miss even a single one.”