Sam Won-tae, who became a 'precious body' of 7 billion won, took his first appearance after moving to NC on the 25th… Was it an "excess" to score nine runs in 2.2 innings against the second-tier Sangmu on the 19th?

Sam Won-tae, who became a 'precious body' of 7 billion won, took his first appearance after moving to NC on the 25th… Was it an "excess" to score nine runs in 2.2 innings against the second-tier Sangmu on the 19th?

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Last winter, right-handed starter Choi Won-tae (28) became the first free agent in his career. Choi and Um Sang-baek were the only starting agents in the FA market. Among the two players who were in the same class as rookies in the 2016 draft, Choi had a longer and bigger career as a starting pitcher, but while Um Sang-baek hit a four-year "jackpot" of 7.8 billion won on Nov. 8 last year right after the opening of the FA market, Choi rarely heard about the contract.메이저놀이터

The reason was simple. It was because of the rules of supply and demand. The prerequisite for the FA's success is the original team's participation in the war. Only when the original team enters into a contract can competition and the price increases. However, Choi was not the preferred bidder for LG, which used to be Choi's original team. On Nov. 11 last year, the team awarded Jang Hyun-sik, a right-handed bullpen pitcher who was released as an FA from Kia, a four-year guarantee of 5.2 billion won. This meant that LG has no intention of giving Choi such a big contract.

The reason why Choi is not popular in the FA market was also simple. Although Um Sang-baek's unexpected jackpot raised the player's standards, the market assessed that his recent performance was not enough to invest the money. Choi has never won double-digit wins in the past five years, and his pitching ability, which is the No. 1 virtue of a starting pitcher, has also declined. He has lived with injuries to the extent that he has never exceeded 150 innings. He has never recorded an earned run average of around 2 or 3 points. It is definitely helpful to be in the starting lineup in good physical condition, but he was not a pitcher attractive enough to receive a large amount of money.

Crucially, he was a pitcher who weakens every post season. He pitched 25 innings in 17 games in fall baseball, suffering from severe slump with two losses, one save, three holds, six homers and 31 earned runs in ERA 11.16. He also started in the second game of last year's Korean Series, where he played for LG, but allowed four runs in 0.1 innings, before being forced to quit early. Last year's fall baseball season also collapsed disastrously by allowing three runs (two earned runs) in 2.2 innings in the semi-playoff and five runs in 3 innings in the playoffs. There was no easy team to sign such a huge contract that would be almost like a prize for a pitcher.

On December 6 last year, the first month of the FA market, Choi Won-tae's contract was reported. It was Samsung, the only company known to have shown interest in Choi Won-tae. Samsung gave a four-year contract of 7 billion won even though there was not much demand for Choi Won-tae. It was natural to talk about "overpay."

Samsung's original goal in the stove league was to reinforce the bullpen. However, Kim Won-joong, who was considered the top 2 player in the bullpen, stayed with Lotte, and Jang Hyun-sik chose to go to LG. Eventually, Samsung focused on strengthening its starting lineup and opened its wallet to Choi Won-tae.

After many twists and turns, Choi Won-tae, who is wearing a Samsung uniform, will be put to the first test. He will start the home game against NC in the 2025 KBO League at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on the 25th. For Choi Won-tae, it is his first appearance to prove that the 7 billion won Samsung invested in him is not wrong.

It was not very good in the exhibition game. He pitched well against SSG on the 8th, the first day of the exhibition game, with one hit, four strikeouts and one run in three innings, but he started against his team, LG, just before the 13th and was shaken by 3.2 innings of four hits, three walks and three runs. He struck out five, but suddenly lost control and gave up three walks in the fourth inning.

Choi Won-tae was scheduled to take the mound in the last exhibition game, which was scheduled to be held on the 18th, but when it was canceled due to snow, he started against Sangmu in the Futures League on the 19th to clean up his sense of practice and check his condition.

Although there are many players who played in the first division of the KBO League in Sangmu, Choi was completely robbed on the day. During 2.2 innings, Choi gave up nine hits, four walks, and one pitch, collapsing to nine runs. He took the mound to check his condition.

Samsung, which won the runner-up prize in the Korean Series last season, is receiving good evaluation again this year. It is considered a rival that can block KIA from losing its second consecutive title in the Korean Series. As per the evaluation, Samsung scored double-digit points for two consecutive days in the opening series against Kiwoom on Tuesday and Sunday, and won the opening game for two consecutive days. Ariel Furado, one of the biggest power boosters for Samsung's pitching staff, took the mound on the first day of the season and garnered two runs in six innings to meet expectations.

What's left is Choi Won-tae. One of the A.C.E.'s duties is to keep winning consecutive games while giving up losing consecutive games. Of course, Samsung did not recruit Choi in anticipation of his role as an ace, but the 7 billion won (7 million U.S. dollars) ransom is a disgrace that he has to play as an ace. Did Choi's appearance at the match against Sangmu on Wednesday really reflect his current pitching capability? Or was it just "dealing".