'APBC National Team Call-up' Coach Ryu Jung-il "We need to replace Kang Baek-ho...aim for 2 matches against Japan"

The South Korean baseball team is looking to continue its success at the Asian Games Hangzhou 2022 and generational change at the Asian Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) 2023.

Led by head coach Ryu Joong-il, the team gathered in Daegu on May 5, where the coaching staff and players split up. The next day, on the 6th, they held their first training session at Daegu Samsung Lions Park. The players arrived at the ballpark at around 1:30 p.m. and took to the field one by one for a quick warm-up.

The team will be in Daegu for a week and will continue to work together at Lions Park until the 13th. On the 8th at 1:30 p.m. and the 11th at 6 p.m., the team will play a scrimmage against Sangsung to check their practical skills. The team will then depart for Japan on the 14th and train at the Tokyo Dome the following day.

While many of the key players from the Asian Games gold medal team are in the squad, Jung Woo-young and Moon Bo-kyung (LG Twins), Park Young-hyun, and Kang Baek-ho (KT Wiz), who are preparing for the Korean Series, were left out of the first call-up. In addition, Kim Young-kyu, Kim Hyung-joon, and Kim Joo-won (NC Dinos), who played nine games in the playoffs, will join the team on July 7. For those who were not called up, the team will decide on additional additions and replacements based on the upcoming postseason schedule.

Instead, pitchers Cho Byung-hyun (SSG Landers), Lee Byung-heon (Doosan Bears), and Kim Tae-kyung, catcher Heo In-seo, and infielders Han Tae-yang (Sangsung), Na Seung-yeop (Lotte), and Moon Hyun-bin (Hanwha), who were included in the 20-man reserve roster, joined the camp in Daegu. The players will be able to gain experience through national team call-ups and will participate in all training schedules with the national team, according to the KBO.

"As this is a tournament for young players, it will be a stage for them to improve their confidence and skills as they will be the mainstays of the 2024 Premier 12, 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), and eventually the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles (LA)," said Ryu Joong-il ahead of the first training session. "As for the players who will play in the Korean Series, we will wait and see how things go before submitting the final roster on Thursday."

"The first reason for bringing seven players is that the players who played in the Korean Series are likely to miss the APBC, and the second reason is that we need to be prepared for replacements in case of injuries. "We talked to the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) governor, Heo Koo-yeon, so that we can replace them immediately if they are not feeling well, injured, etc. on the way, rather than just training with the players on the roster. This is the first time we are doing this. If we have a reserve roster of six or seven players, we can replace them before submitting the final roster. We have about six days to train, and in between, we have two practice games with the general manager to see how they are doing." 무지개토토 도메인

At the end of the interview, coach Ryu Jung-il also mentioned Lee Yi-ri. "I saw him the day before and said hello. I checked his fingers first," he said, adding, "The blisters (from the Asian Games) were improving. He was supposed to start one game because he's an ace, but his nose