Both (Kim)Ha-sung and (Lee) Jeong-hoo were lonely." Best friend's complaint was carefully not missed, which was the reason for the six-year contract
Both (Kim)Ha-sung and (Lee) Jeong-hoo were lonely." Best friend's complaint was carefully not missed, which was the reason for the six-year contract
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The Kiwoom Heroes has rookies, foreign players and the oldest players. Kim Jae-hyun, a catcher who signed a multi-year contract with Kiwoom for up to 1 billion won (total annual salary of 600 million won and optional 400 million won) for a six-year contract last month.메이저놀이터
Kim Jae-hyun, who graduated from Daejeon High School, was nominated by the Heroes in 2012 as the 76th in the eighth round of the KBO Rookie Draft. Since his debut in the first division in 2015, he has played in 518 games with a batting average of 0.221 (188 hits in 851 at-bats), seven homers, 81 RBIs, 76 runs and one stolen base, and an on-base percentage of 0.274 slugging percentage of 0.288. He has played in more than 100 games in a season for 10 years (2018 and 2024), and this year he has a career-high backup catcher with a batting average of 0.243 and an on-base plus slugging percentage of 0.578.
It was a surprising contract for me. "I went to negotiate my salary, and they offered me a multi-year contract," Kim Jae-hyun, who recently met Star News at the "2024 Kiwoom Heroes Year-end Charity Event," said. "I agonized over my salary for a day. I thought it would be okay to play for a long time in one team, considering the fact that I am a free agent and many other factors. In fact, it is not easy to remain in the Heroes for a long time."
"I asked because I was also curious about the six-year period. I think the club saw six years as the period when I could do well without getting sick. I'm not the type to cheat, and I'm the type who doesn't get sick no matter where I get hit by a ball," he said with a smile.
The response was also enthusiastic. The backup players of other teams were Kim Ha-sung (29) and Lee Jung-hoo (26) of the San Francisco Giants. "I asked (Kim) Ha-sung and (Lee) Jung-hoo how to sign the contract. Then, I said, "What are you worried about? Congratulations," and the other backup players called me. As they were unfamiliar with multi-year contracts, other players also reportedly gained a lot of courage. The fact that hard work can give me motivation also encouraged me," Kim said.
Kim Jae-hyun is a word that is often used in Kiwoom's dugout and interviews. Rookie players say "(Kim) got used to it fast thanks to Jae-hyun," while foreign players say "I trust and throw it." This year, foreign players Ariel Furado (28, Samsung Lions) and Enmanuel de Heysus (28, KT Wiz) all contributed to the team's 23rd win.
Kiwoom said, "Kim Jae-hyun is a player who always gives trust to his teammates with a positive mind and responsible attitude, even though he is in charge of the catcher position, which is physically and mentally burdensome." As the best member of the catcher's group, I look forward to helping junior catchers such as Kim Dong-heon and Kim Gun-hee grow and serving as mentors for young pitchers.
The secret to this lies in the meticulousness that he did not miss even his best friends' complaints. On top of that, he identifies individual players' personalities and talks about them differently. "People say (Kim) Ha-sung or (Lee) Jung-hoo is lonely when they go to the U.S. A lot of times that they are lonely. Hearing that, I thought foreign players who came to Korea would be the same, so I came closer to them. I am not good at English, but I approached them first for no reason, joking around, recommending delicious food, and asking them what they have been up to," Kim said.
Even foreign players tend to be more friendly and friendly. "[Kim] Jae-hyun is a catcher who gives strength to me as a pitcher. Jae-hyun tells me honestly and realistically about my ball and pitching on the day. He likes young players, too. He takes good care of me and makes me approach younger players. I think I did a great job in signing a multi-year contract," Ha Young-min said.
For the first time in his professional career, Kim has also been nominated in the Golden Glove catcher category. He pitched 758 ⅓ innings, surpassing the 750-inning mark for the first time. "Honestly, I feel embarrassed because my performance is so bad. However, I have a desire to be nominated again because I participate in many games like this year," Kim said in an interview.
"Since I signed a multi-year contract, I'm going to work harder. It's a bit of a burden, but I want to work hard and hear that it's a "cost-effective contract." Defensively, I am confident that I can pay enough for my meal, but I want to do better than this year by compensating for my hit. I hope it will be a six-year win-win experience between the club and me," he said.