LG Twins infielder Koo Bon-hyeok recorded a surprising on-base percentage of 1st place in the exhibition games. He will receive the opportunity to start in his debut opening game.

LG was unable to play the final exhibition game against the NC Dinos, scheduled for the 18th at Jamsil Stadium. The heavy snowfall that started the previous night led to the decision to cancel the game due to 'heavy snowfall cancellation.' LG finished the exhibition games with a record of 4 wins and 5 losses, placing 5th.

LG will face Lotte in the regular season opener at Jamsil Stadium on the 22nd. The opening lineup for LG is almost set. The starting pitcher for the opening game will be foreign pitcher Yoni Chirinos, while Lotte's starting pitcher will be foreign pitcher Charlie Barnes.

Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop noted in an interview with reporters after the exhibition game against NC was canceled on the 18th that he plans to change 2 players in the starting lineup regarding the number of right-handed batters. Manager Yeom has considered using backup right-handed batsmen in the starting lineup against Lotte's left-handed starter Barnes during the exhibition games.

Manager Yeom, who revealed Song Chan-eui's participation in the opening game the day before, stated, 'We will have right-handed batters at second base and left field.' This means that Song Chan-eui will be in left field and Koo Bon-hyeok will be in the lineup for second base in the opening game.

Starting left fielder Moon Seong-joo recovered from a minor back injury and made his first appearance in the exhibition game against NC on the 17th. Starting second baseman Shin Min-jae had a batting average of .185 in the exhibition games and is hitless against Barnes in his career.

Manager Yeom said, 'Moon Seong-joo is still not capable defensively. I considered using right-handed batter Moon Jeong-bin, but Kim Hyun-soo's performance is not bad, and his results against Barnes are decent,' adding, 'I'm concerned about the 2nd batting order without Moon Seong-joo.' The batting order for the 2nd spot is under consideration between Kim Hyun-soo and Oh Ji-hwan.

Koo Bon-hyeok, who will start at second base instead of Shin Min-jae in the opening game, showed good batting form during the exhibition games. He recorded a batting average of .368 (7 hits in 19 at-bats) over 9 games. He also garnered 8 walks and 1 hit by pitch, resulting in an impressive on-base percentage of .571. He ranked 1st in on-base percentage for the exhibition games. He recorded 2 stolen bases and had no strikeouts.

Koo Bon-hyeok, who joined LG with the 55th pick in the 6th round of the 2019 draft, will make his debut as a starter in the opening game for the first time. Although his outstanding defensive skills were acknowledged since his signing, his batting was lackluster. His career batting average was in the low .100s until he completed his military service with the Army from 2022 to 2023, during which he stepped up his hitting.

Koo Bon-hyeok appeared in 133 games last year, recording a batting average of .257 (87 hits in 339 at-bats), 2 home runs, 43 RBIs, and an OPS of .662. Early in the season, he contributed as a backup at second base, third base, and shortstop, hitting walk-off home runs among other highlights. He played nearly 400 plate appearances, solidifying his position as a 'backup starter' behind the main nine players.

Meanwhile, looking at the performance of LG batters against Barnes over the past two years, Hong Chang-ki had 5 hits in 9 at-bats (batting average .556), Park Dong-won had 4 hits in 8 at-bats with 1 home run (batting average .500), Moon Seong-joo had 4 hits in 9 at-bats (batting average .444), Kim Hyun-soo had 5 hits in 14 at-bats (batting average .357), Moon Bo-kyung had 2 hits in 8 at-bats with 1 home run (batting average .250), Austin had 3 hits in 12 at-bats (batting average .250), Park Hae-min had 2 hits in 9 at-bats (batting average .222), Oh Ji-hwan was hitless in 8 at-bats (batting average .000), Shin Min-jae was hitless in 6 at-bats (batting average .000), and Koo Bon-hyeok was hitless in 3 at-bats (batting average .000).

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