“(Kim) Do-young is a good stimulus for me.”
Professional baseball player Yoon Dong-hee of the Lotte Giants signed a salary contract for the 2025 season worth 2 billion won, an increase of 1.1 billion won (122.2%) from the previous 900 million won, thanks to his performance with a batting average of .293, 156 hits, 14 home runs, 85 RBIs, and 97 runs in 141 games last season. It was a moment when he surpassed an eight-digit salary to reach a salary in the 2 billion won range in just four years since making his professional debut as the 24th overall pick in the third round of the Lotte draft in 2022.
Meeting Yoon Dong-hee at the second spring camp in Miyazaki, he joked, “I still don’t feel that 2 billion won is significant. I haven’t received my first paycheck yet,” and added, “Apart from the figure of 2 billion won, it’s true that my salary has increased significantly. I believe that with the weight of money comes the weight of responsibility. Therefore, I am approaching my training more diligently than last year. If I do that, I can show a better performance during the season.”
When asked if he expected to have a salary of 2 billion won in his fourth year as a professional, he shook his head. Yoon Dong-hee smiled and said, “I didn’t even know I would be playing in the first team right now,” adding, “There were several incidents during my rookie year, and I didn’t make the army team. I always had a lot of thoughts about when this would happen, but I believe the efforts I made back then have led me to where I am now.”
What is the spring camp like with the title of '2 billion won man'? Yoon Dong-hee replied, “Playing baseball in front of fans is incredibly fun, but there’s also an interesting aspect to preparing for the season during the off-season because you don’t have to deliver results yet.” He continued, “I spent the off-season with the expectation that I could do better today while focusing on the process, and I’m confirming that during the camp. Fortunately, I think I've prepared well and am enjoying training while feeling fulfilled.”
Manager Kim Tae-hyung is planning to place Yoon Dong-hee, who was a table setter in Miyazaki, in the middle lineup alongside Victor RAY and Son Ho-young. Yoon Dong-hee, whose home runs increased from 2 in the 2023 season to 14 in 2024, explained, “The middle lineup often creates situations with runners on base. Since I haven’t had many runners ahead of me, I don’t feel it much, but no matter the batting order, I think it will be fine as long as I do my part. I’m not overly conscious of it.”
Yoon Dong-hee has also made a name for himself with the national team, quickly establishing himself as a representative outfielder for the country. He has successfully taken on the role of a decisive player in events such as the Hangzhou Asian Games, the Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC), and the Premier 12. Next year, the World Baseball Classic (WBC), which will see numerous top-level major leaguers participating, will be held.
Yoon Dong-hee remarked, “Baseball is really difficult. Last year at this time, I thought I had to be careful of the second-year jinx, but now that it’s this year, new challenges are emerging.” He added, “If I’m too focused on the national team, it might be detrimental. I need to finish the season well to get selected, so for now, I want to focus more on our team, the Giants, and achieve good results.”
In an interview, Yoon Dong-hee shared his honest thoughts about his ‘age-mate best friend’ Kim Do-young of the Kia Tigers, with whom he has been frequently compared since last year. For Yoon Dong-hee, Kim Do-young is a good competitor, a role model, and a source of motivation.
Yoon Dong-hee laughed and said, “I often get compared with (Kim) Do-young, but it should be a rivalry,” adding, “I want to rise to the same level as those who do well like Do-young. Of course, there are times when I feel bad being compared to Do-young, but I also think it can be a good driving force when I feel bad. Right now, Do-young is doing better than me, but I didn't expect my salary to reach 2 billion won this year either. If I keep preparing well, I believe I can reach the same level as Do-young. I find that aspect interesting.”
Finally, when asked what kind of baseball player he wants to be in Lotte going forward, Yoon Dong-hee said, “I have goals and dreams I want to achieve, but I feel like I haven’t shown results that match them, so I can’t say what kind of batter I want to become.” He continued, “I just want to perform in a way that our Lotte fans think, ‘At least when Yoon Dong-hee comes to bat, he will hit.’ If in the future I hear people say, ‘I look forward to Yoon Dong-hee coming up,’ I think I would consider myself to have become a fairly successful player.”
[OSEN]