The Blue Dragon Flag High School Baseball Championship opens today, and future stars who will shine in the tournament
At the 78th Cheongnyonggi National High School Baseball Championship and weekend league Wangjungwangjeon (co-hosted by the Chosun Ilbo, Sports Chosun, and Korea Baseball Softball Association), which will open on the 8th, you can see the skills of promising players who will knock on the domestic and foreign professional doors.
Masan Yongmago pitcher Jang Hyun-suk (19) is the only amateur to be named to the Hangzhou Asian Games baseball team that will open in September. A college student has been selected for the Asian Games national team, but it is the first time that a high school student has been selected. The main weapon is a fastball with a maximum speed of 157 kilometers per hour, which comes from a height of 190 centimeters and a weight of 90 kilograms. He started playing in high school competitions in earnest since his second year, and played a special role with 6 wins and 3 losses in 17 games and an average earned run average of 1.89. This year, he became stronger with three wins and no losses in five games, 0.53. He is considered the No. 1 candidate in the KBO (Korea Baseball Organization) rookie draft in September, but there is a possibility of challenging the U.S.먹튀검증 Major League. Some say that the domestic draft situation will vary depending on whether Jang Hyun-suk goes to the U.S. or not. However, it is an anxiety factor that he failed to take the mound for about three months due to a biceps injury after the Shinsegae E-Mart Cup in April. He set the Blue Dragon Flag competition as the time to return and finished rehabilitation was completed. Jin Min-soo, head coach of Masan Yong Margot, said, “Jang Hyun-suk’s current physical condition is more than 80 percent of his best days. There is no problem in participating in the Blue Dragon Flag competition, he said. “I plan to put Jang Hyun-seok on the mound at the most important moment depending on the game situation.”
If Jang Hyun-suk declares his entry into the U.S., it is widely expected that the No. 1 domestic draft will go to Hwang Joon-seo (18) of Jangchung High School. Hwang Jun-seo has been the ace of Jangchung High School since his second year. In 12 games, he won two games, lost two games, lost 1.84. He was also selected for the national baseball World Cup team under the age of 18 last year. He was the only second-year pitcher. He started against Taiwan in the World Cup and pitched five scoreless innings. Hwang Joon-seo was selected as the No. 1 “anticipated pitcher” (21 votes) by the coaches of 53 participating teams in the Blue Dragon Flag. It was nine votes ahead of second place Jang Hyun-suk. Hwang Joon-seo’s maximum speed is 150km per hour, slower than Jang Hyun-seok, but he is a left-handed pitcher, uses various breaking balls, and has excellent control of control and speed. Coach Song Min-soo of Jangchung High School said, “Hwang Jun-seo can control his fastball speed at will. “I wonder if my ability to run the game is right for a high school student,” he said adding, “If I meet a difficult opponent in this tournament, I will start Hwang Joon-seo.”
Among the hitters, Cho Dae-hyun (18) of Gangneung High School and Baek Joon-seo (18) of Deoksu High School are the focus of attention. It was tied for first place (5 votes) as the “anticipated hitter” selected by the coaches. Cho Dae-hyun earned nicknames such as “High School Otani” and “Jotani” for his excellent pitching and batting performance like Shohei Otani (29, Japan), who plays in the Major League. In this year’s high school tournament, he batted 0.328 with 11 RBIs in 17 games as a batter and recorded 6 wins and no losses of 0.56 in 13 games as a pitcher. Professional team scouts are paying keen attention to the rapid rise this year. Baek Joon-seo has been the team’s fourth batter since his second year due to his excellent contact skills. His high school career batting average is 0.339 with two home runs. In April, he led the team to the championship with a batting average of 0.550 in seven games at Shinsegae E-Mart Cup and became the MVP of the tournament.
In addition, top draft candidates such as Jangchung High School’s Yuk Sun-yeop, Busan High School’s Won Sang-hyun, Gangneung High School’s Yuk Cheong-myung, and Gyeongbuk High School’s Jeon Mir have completed the preheating. The tournament will be available on YouTube of the Korea Baseball Softball Association in all games, and will be broadcast live by SPOTV, a sports channel, from the quarterfinals.
