Professional baseball player Song Seung-mun (29) of Kiwoom Heroes expressed confidence that they can achieve good results, overturning the predictions of finishing last.

Song Seung-mun said in an interview at the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO Media Day & Fan Fest held at the Lotte Hotel World in Seoul on the 20th, "I think the team's strength has improved compared to last year. There seems to be more coherence, and I have a good feeling that the offensive side will bring back the firepower reminiscent of my days with Nexen."

Attending the media day, Song Seung-mun, along with Manager Hong Won-ki and Lee Ju-hyung, set winning the championship as their goal for this season. In particular, when asked about the goal and championship promise, Song noted, "Our goal is to win the overall championship. If we win the overall championship, we plan to have a camping event with the fans at Gocheok Dome. Also, if we make it to fall baseball, our players promise that we will all get egg rolls like Puig."

Kiwoom has remained at the bottom of the league for two consecutive years since finishing second in the Korean Series in 2022. Following Lee Jung-hoo's (San Francisco) departure, Kim Hye-sung (Los Angeles Dodgers) also moved to Major League Baseball, resulting in a series of marquee stars leaving the team. Most experts are assessing Kiwoom as a strong candidate for finishing last again this year.

However, Kiwoom recorded 6 wins, 1 draw, and 3 losses with a .667 winning percentage in the exhibition games, placing them in a tie for third. The lineup, bolstered by two foreign hitters (Yasiel Puig and Ruben Cardines), showcased overwhelming power, leading the league in team home runs (13) despite Puig missing most of the exhibition games due to symptoms of inflammation. The starting rotation, consisting of only foreign pitcher Kenny Rosenberg, also showed potential as domestic starters like Ha Young-min, Kim Yoon-ha, and Jung Hyun-woo performed well.

Song Seung-mun said, "In fact, I have not discussed winning even once during interviews in the winter. I have always aimed for fall baseball. Last year, we placed 10th, so winning is not easy. But after actually playing the games and synchronizing with my teammates, I felt more capable than I expected this year. So today, I set the goal of finishing first without hesitation."

Song Seung-mun, who said, "I have been surprised since winter," explained his confidence by stating, "Although Puig and Cardines have joined, the players who didn’t perform well last year have prepared very well, and I felt a definite change. That’s why I had a good feeling from winter, and after the exhibition games, the young rookie pitchers were better than expected, and the young rookie position players were good. (Lee) Ju-hyung also feels clearly better than last year, so I don’t think our team is at a level that other teams can overlook."

Song Seung-mun, who said, "In fact, I don't tend to expect much from rookies," noted, "There are the best players from high school gathered in the second team, and the best players from them are gathered in the first team. There will undoubtedly be difficulties in the beginning; however, I believe that this year's rookie players have a lot of good things. There may be ups and downs, but I think they will have the strength to recover quickly. So, I have high expectations for their performance."

After achieving an impressive season last year with a batting average of .304 (179 hits in 527 at-bats), 19 home runs, 104 RBIs, and 88 runs scored with an OPS of .927, Song Seung-mun will change his position to second base this season to fill the void left by Kim Hye-sung, who moved to Major League Baseball.

Song Seung-mun said, "I cannot fill (Kim) Hye-sung's position; however, baseball is not played alone. Just because the second baseman is weak does not mean we will lose. If there is a shortcoming in one position, someone can fill in from another position. The rookie players who replace my former position as third baseman may perform even better, and (Lee) Ju-hyung seems likely to fill the gap well too."

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