“If I hadn’t made it that far, I wouldn’t have announced my retirement.”
For Choi Hyeong-woo, the eldest brother of KIA, the 2022 season was a’half success’. He had a batting average of 0.264 with 14 home runs, 71 RBIs and 55 runs in 132 games for an OPS of 0.787. He had a batting average of 0.233, 12 homers, 55 RBIs, and 52 points in 104 games, and an OPS of 0.729, which was only slightly better than the 2021 season, but it is clear that his performance does not match his career.
The downturn in the first half was especially fatal. In 78 games, he had a batting average of 0.227, 7 home runs and 35 RBIs. At least, in 54 games in the second half, he had a batting average of 0.314, 7 homers, and 36 RBIs, contributing to the KIA’s advancement to the postseason. Earlier this month, Choi Hyung-woo expressed regret by looking back at the season on the KIA YouTube channel GyaTV.
Choi Hyeong-woo said, “My score this season is only 2-3 points. If only I had done well, I think he would have gone to the top. Even if we did well in the second half, if we did well in the beginning, I think our team would have reached 2nd or 3rd place.” He smiled bitterly and said, “I rebounded a little in the second half, but if I hadn’t made it that far, I wouldn’t have announced my retirement. A little bit of survival in the second half is the part where we can look forward to next year.”
Choi Hyung-woo is still dizzy when he thinks of the first half. “Last year, it was said that it was sluggish because of the snow, but this year there was no pain anywhere. He went into the season with confidence, but it was frustrating because things went differently than he thought. He was under a lot of stress. They made plays that made no sense to me. He suffered a lot in April and May.”
Severe self-criticism followed. Choi Hyeong-woo said, “Even though the spring camp was difficult, I faithfully followed the schedule. Some records were also recorded in the demonstration game. So, he had high expectations, but he ‘exploded’ during the season. It was a bit like that to the point where he wondered if he should quit baseball,” he said.
Choi Hyung-woo recalled that he was not even in a slump, which is commonly said. “A ball that was less than 130 km looked like it was 160 km. He thought he was good, but he either got a foul or he didn’t get hit. I couldn’t do anything. He used dozens of methods, but all of them were disappointing.”
Choi Hyung-woo said several times that there was no clear momentum or driving force for a rebound in the second half. Just “If a person goes through a slump for 2-3 months, they will adjust. He had gone all the way to the bottom, so he had risen slightly. From late June, early July, he was like a baseball player.”
The good flow and rhythm of the second half should continue into the 2023 season. The 2023 season is the final season of the 3-year, 4.7 billion won free agent contract. KIA has virtually no power reinforcement in the 2022-2023 offseason. Park Dong-won (LG) has left, and Choi Won-joon (executive director) will join in June next year. On the contrary, for two months after the opening, the punching power of the other line may be lower than last year. This is why Hyung-Woo Choi needs to hit sharply in April and May next year, unlike the previous two seasons.
I have reached a milestone that is personally meaningful to me. With 463 career doubles, if you add only 2, you will surpass Doosan coach Lee Seung-yeop (464) and rank first in the career. In addition, if you add only 38 RBIs to 1461 in total, you will surpass manager Lee Seung-yeop (1498) and become first in the career. The first 1,500 RBIs in the KBO League are Choi Hyung-woo’s strongest motivation. Successful achievement is expected.메이저사이트
Choi Hyeong-woo said, “I think it would be nice if the team only went up to 2nd or 3rd place. If I only showed 70% of my skills this year, the team would have gone up even further. It would be nice to hit 30% in batting average, but I wonder if the team will win more if we get 8-90 RBIs around 30%. Of course, there is greed for RBI. The desire to score points is strong. He said, “If he achieves (1500 RBIs) quickly without being conceited,” he said.