KT Wiz is one of the teams that have consistently taken an active move in the trade market, and not a few players have left KT or become part 꽁머니지급 of the team. Even narrowing the scope down to the 2020s and beyond, KT has made at least one trade each year.
However, there were not many cases that achieved results in a short period of time, but this year the story was different. As soon as he joined the team, his opportunities to play increased, and infielder Lee Ho-yeon, who quickly got the starting position, is the main character.
Lee Ho-yeon, who joined the Lotte Giants in the 53rd place in the 2nd round of 6th round in 2018, played 88 games in the first team last year and made his name known to baseball fans, but most of the games he played as a backup agent rather than a starter. This season, even before the trade, Lee Ho-yeon could not play a single game in the first team and had to stay in the second team.
In the meantime, the turning point came on May 19th, when Lotte and KT traded 1:1. At that time, KT gave away left-handed pitcher Shim Jae-min and embraced infielder Lee Ho-yeon. Shim Jae-min, who was one of the first-year members of the first team and had high utility value, but KT was in a hurry to infuse resources in the infield considering the team’s present and future.
Lee Ho-yeon was given a chance in the first team right away without having time to adapt to the team, and as June came, he further enhanced his sense of hitting. In particular, on June 16, against Suwon Samsung Lions, he hit his first final hit in his debut, and two days later, on the 18th, against Samsung, he made his presence known by hitting four hits.
Lee Ho-yeon, who was diagnosed with a fractured nasal bone after being hit by a ball against the Suwon Lotte Giants on June 21, was away for more than two weeks. kept Even after the All-Star break, he has consistently produced hits and batted in the low .300.
In particular, Lee Ho-yeon set up a table setter with Kim Min-hyeok in the Suwon Hanwha Eagles match on the 9th. His performance was also decent with 1 hit in 4 at-bats and 2 runs scored on 4 balls, and his joy was even greater as he scored in the final. It took less than three months for the infielder, who was a backup agent, to be placed as a starting pitcher and table setter.
In addition, Lee Ho-yeon is proving his worth in his defense to the extent that he can handle not only his main position of second base, but also third base and first base. It cannot be determined, but looking at the results so far, KT’s trade was a ‘great success’.
KT’s team performance after the trade is also attracting attention to the extent that it is called the ‘Lee Ho-yeon effect’. KT, who played 61 games from May 19 when the trade was announced to the 10th of this month, recorded 41 wins and 20 losses (0.672), showing the highest win rate among the 10 clubs during this period alone. It has a higher win rate than the ‘leading league’ LG Twins (0.618).
Two months ago, Lee Ho-yeon, after hitting the final hit, emphasized that the team’s fall baseball comes first rather than personal goals, saying, “I hope the season will end well and the team will go to fall baseball.” He also said that he wants to feel the unique atmosphere of fall baseball. He never forgot to say that fans’ support and cheers are a great motivator, and he is stepping closer to the picture he dreamed of.