After 29 years, he became a “winning manager” by guiding LG to the Korean Series title, but failed to lead Ae-Je-Ja’s resurgence. After being released, Ae-Je-Ja started looking for a new team.
In November of last year, it was Icheon LG Champions Park. The new LG manager, Yoon Kyung-yeop, was reunited with Seo and was confident in his resurgence. In the past, Seo, 34, who became the first and only player in the KBO to reach the 200-hit milestone, cited frequently changing batting pads as a problem. He believes he can rebound if he returns to the batting form he used when he hit 200 hits.
Seo was in his prime when Yoon was the Nexen manager (2013-2016). In 2014, Seo won the regular-season MVP award after hitting .201 with a .370 batting average. The team had home run king Park Byung-ho, who batted .333 with 52 home runs and 124 RBIs, shortstop Kang Jeong-ho, who batted .356 with 40 home runs and 117 RBIs, 먹튀검증 and 20-win pitcher Van Heken, but Seo was the MVP.
Seo, who returned to LG before Yeom, had been struggling.
In late July of the 2021 season, LG acquired Seo in a trade with Kiwoom to bolster its second base depth. LG sent starting pitcher Chung Chan-heon and received Seo in a one-for-one trade.
However, Seo failed to capitalize on the trade, batting just 2-for-47 (58 RBI in 235 at-bats) with 24 runs scored in 68 games for LG in the 2021 season. He was eligible for free agency after the season, but opted not to apply. The desperate Seo didn’t have a great season in 2022 either, as he was plagued by injuries. He appeared in just 77 games and batted just 2-for-2 (49 hits in 219 at-bats).
After falling short of expectations in his second year with LG, Seo met with Yeom to try to turn things around. He chose the free agent third baseman. Coach Yeom gave him a task using videos of Seo’s best days, and he returned to his old hitting form in spring training.
Yeom envisioned Seo as a table-setter at second base. Seo showed promise in the exhibition games, batting 3-for-6 and leading the team in RBIs, but the season didn’t go as expected.
After opening the season at the top of the order, Seo went 2-for-16 (.125 batting average) in the first three games before dropping to the bottom of the batting order in game four. Through mid-May, he was 2-for-7 (18-for-87) with 12 RBIs and 14 runs scored in 31 games. His defense at second base led the league with nine errors, and he was eventually removed from the first team roster on May 19.
By demoting him to the second team,
Yeom allowed Seo to decide when he wanted to return to the first team. However, in the second team, Seo took a month off in mid-June due to a nagging back injury. In August, his hitting improved with a triple-digit batting average, but it was too late.
After Seo was sent to the second team, utility man Kim Min-sung performed well at second base from mid-May. Min-sung, who also played shortstop during shortstop Oh Ji-hwan’s side injury in April, played primarily at second base in May and June, and showed off his hot bat by batting 3-for-8 (36-for-117) with four home runs and 21 RBIs in 44 games. In the first half of the year, he batted 2-for-8 with four home runs and 31 RBIs in 70 games.
After Kim Min-sung went down with a hamstring injury in early July, stolen base specialist Shin Min-jae became the new second baseman as he steadied himself offensively and defensively. In 14 games in July alone, he batted 3-for-7 (16-for-43) with seven RBIs and six stolen bases.
In the end, Seo missed the timing of his return to the first team due to injuries and the performance of his replacements, and was a late addition to the first team in the September expansion roster. The second base spot was fully occupied by Shin Min-jae. Seo, who has played mostly as a pinch-hitter since his return, is batting 1-for-7 with four RBIs in 23 games since September. He finished the season with a .542 OPS with 22 hits in 110 at-bats. He participated in training camps ahead of the Korean Series, but did not make the roster for the Korean Series because he was behind Kim Min-sung, Jeong Ju-hyun, and Son Ho-young as the backup infielders.
LG Non-Designated List (12 players) Pitchers:
Song Eun-beom Lee Chan-hyuk Kim Tae-hyung (lefty) Sung Jae-heon Lim Jung-woo Infielders: Seo Gun-chang Jung Ju-hyun (retired) Kim Sung-hyup Choi Hyun-joon Outfielders: Lee Ik-woong Choi Min-chang Lee Chul-min
LG announced 12 players were removed from the roster ahead of the deadline for submitting holdovers on May 25. Seo Geon-chang is included. Seo has twice postponed his free agency, hoping to reunite with his old mentor for a second chance. 메이저사이트 After joining LG as a developmental player in 2008, Seo was released after two years and took a chance with Nexen, where he found success. He returned to LG in a trade, but it was a sad ending: another release.
Seo felt out of place in a deep LG roster and wanted to be released by the club for a new challenge. Seo’s salary this season was 200 million won. Which team will he choose for his new opportunity?