Участник:Lee Seo-joon, a sophomore at Seoul National University's baseball team, is determined
Two years ago, Deoksu High School was quite famous for its story of the second player to produce a Seoul National University student after infielder Lee Jung-ho (currently registered as a coach in the baseball team at Seoul National University). It was the result of coach Jung Yoon-jin's full support and his efforts for a good student. Lee Seo-joon (20) is the main character. Lee Seo-joon has already entered Seoul National University for two years.
Lee Jung-ho, a senior, entered Seoul National University to achieve his dream as a "baseball administrator," while Lee Seo-joon is dreaming bigger. It is the "first professional player from Seoul National University." In the baseball world, there have been coaches or secretaries who have graduated from Seoul National University, but no professional players have graduated from Seoul National University. Lee Seo-joon is dreaming of the very 'first man'. The main position is an infielder, but taking the mound as a pitcher is a great help to the Seoul National University baseball team, which has few former elite players.
He said he had experienced the U-League for two years, but he was disappointed. He hit .300 with his first home run since entering college, so what was disappointing? In response, Lee Seo-joon said, "I felt that I had to make a good body even on days when there was no game because I was physically struggling."
What if a normal ball leads to an error? It's not an offense and defense shift, it's a midsummer season On the day I take the mound as a pitcher, I feel like I'm struggling as the number of pitches increases
The father, who saw his son struggling in the U-League like this, is sad but continues to cheer for him. This is because Seoul National University's baseball team clearly has some inevitable parts. In particular, there are many cases where the situation that would have become an offense and defense shift does not stop if a normal ball is handled well, so there are still many points to be supplemented. This was why Lee Seo-joon felt that he had to "grow his strength." That's why he constantly trains himself to do better.
"At the end of the day I felt I had to do better. So in the offseason, the focus is on how to maintain my physical strength without getting tired next year. Fortunately, next year, some of the people returning from the military are good pitchers (Kim Yu-an, going to Seoul National University to study after playing baseball until his freshman year at Gyeonggi High School), and there is also Park Kun-woo, a fellow graduate of Shinil High School. It's worth trying," he said, expressing his honest feelings.
However, despite an increase in the number of innings pitched (18 1/3 innings → 36 innings) compared to last year, the earned run decreased (32 points → 29 points), clearly showing a noticeable appearance. Of course, the long-term hit was still sophisticated enough to hit .300 for the second consecutive year.
Seoul National University played baseball with 16 entries as of this year. As such, there are many evaluations that it is great just to participate in the league itself. At this point, it is possible to recruit additional players among physical education students, but the joining process is not easy. Only after a fierce internal test will it be officially registered as a player with the Korea Baseball Softball Association. So it's very difficult to win one game, but I'm sweating again today to grow into a better baseball team.
During the conversation, Lee Seo-joon suddenly expressed his practical difficulties, saying, "It's not as easy as I thought to schedule a practice game." Occasionally, they try to revive their experience in the U-League, which is insufficient by exchanges with high school teams, but it is not easy to link up with the same university teams. So, I talked to Dankook University coach Kim Yoo-jin about this issue, who I happened to meet at the stadium, and I received a reply that I would gladly schedule a practice match. Thanks to this, Lee Seo-joon also expressed his wish to learn the lack of U-League games through practice games.
Seoul National University has played only 13 games this year. It was too small a number. Fortunately, more games will be held next year due to the operation of the league system, so I'm looking forward to that. However, there is nevertheless much to be desired. I hope many people will have a lot of games with Seoul National University. It's really worth a try next year. Lee Seo-joon's honest feeling is, "I really want to play in the King of Kings, but I really want to win my first victory next year."
Like other ordinary students, Lee Seo-joon is thinking about the military. This is because military service can be an opportunity in baseball life. In fact, there is a reserve resource to return to the baseball team in the first semester of next year. But I'm going to think a little more carefully.
At first, I thought about going to the military after the first semester of next year. However, I think I will have to decide after digesting the first semester. And most of all, I want to hear that Seoul National University has really changed next year."
Lee Seo-joon, who is now entering the third-year season, has begun to take a step further toward his dream.