Lee Jeong-hoo, the first adult to wear the
Taegeuk symbol and challenge for a gold medal, takes on the role of the national team’s offensive center and
says, “We will bring in runners with a sense of responsibility.”

Noh Si-hwan, born in 2000, is a representative ‘Beijing Kid’. During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, I dreamed of becoming a baseball player after seeing Doosan coach Lee Seung-yeop, who was suffering from extreme poor performance, hit a come-from-behind home run in the semifinals against Japan, and closer Jeong Dae-hyun induce a double play that sealed the gold medal in the finals against Cuba. Noh Si-hwan said, “The scene that ended with a double play at the end was cool, like a drama,” and “I wanted to play baseball after watching the Olympics.”

바카라사이트Through the video, I admired the national team seniors who played in international competitions such as the Olympics and the World Baseball Classic (WBC), but I also learned about the weight of the Taegeuk symbol. Noh Si-hwan said, “There were many cases where the national team’s main hitters performed poorly. “It has that much weight,” he said. “I think it will be difficult because the opposing pitchers never give me good balls and I have to throw even harder. Still, it is the central batsman who has to overcome the weight. “It’s my first experience, but I will overcome it well,” he said.

This national team is not the best force as it consists of 21 players under the age of 25 or who have been professional players for four years or less and three wild cards who are ‘under 29 years old’. Japan, which will compete for the gold medal, is comprised of professional baseball players of a level comparable to that of the KBO League, while Taiwan is expected to face a tough challenge as it is known that the best players, including seven minor leaguers from the American Professional Baseball League, will participate.

Noh Si-hwan emphasized, “As they are representing their country, the opposing team will definitely have many good players, but in short-term games, the game is decided by just a single point.” He added, “It is important to know how good your teamwork is and how well you are able to concentrate when you have a chance.” He continued, “There is nothing to be afraid of because our past seniors were clearly strong in chances, and when it was important, they showed up and achieved good results.” He added, “Although they are young players, they can work together and do well. It’s best for anyone to do well and win. “Of course, it would be better if I could be the solution,” he emphasized.

I also have good memories of the Taegeuk mark. Noh Si-hwan won the 2018 Asian Youth Baseball Championship when he was in his third year at Gyeongnam High School, beating Taiwan and Japan. At the time, he was the national team’s No. 4 hitter and had a batting average of .600 (0.692), hitting hard and winning a batting award. Noh Si-hwan smiled and said, “I did well back then,” and then expressed his wish, “I hope to have similar batting results in the Asian Games.” However, he expressed confidence, saying, “There is a difference between the adult national team and the youth national team.” He added, “But I like and enjoy international competitions, so I’m not nervous.”

The matchup against underdog Hong Kong on October 1st in the first round of the tournament is not bad either. Noh Si-hwan said, “During the All-Star Game, (Lee) Jeong-hoo said, ‘I’m very nervous about the first game. The tension eases when you meet an easy team at first. He said, ‘If you meet a difficult team from the start, it can be difficult.’ “The first game is in Hong Kong, so our luck against them is pretty good,” he explained.

Lastly, he said, “The season is still going on, so it doesn’t really feel like the competition is imminent yet,” and “I said to Won Tae-in (Samsung), who I’ve played with since the youth national team, ‘Let’s win the gold medal no matter what.’ He also said, “I think he will feel less sorry for his team (Hanwha) if he comes with a gold medal around his neck.”