"It looks like it will take a long time."
Lotte Giants manager Kim Tae-hyoung explained the current catcher situation ahead of the exhibition game against the KT Wiz held at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 13th. He mentioned that Jeung Bo-keun's injury seems likely to be prolonged.
Jeung Bo-keun only participated in the first Taiwanese Tainan spring camp this year before returning home. He did not join the second Miyazaki camp. It was an injury to his right thumb. In November 2023 he suffered an avulsion fracture during training and underwent surgery. This is a recurrence of that injury.
Jeung Bo-keun is spending time with the rehabilitation squad for the time being. He is concentrating on rehabilitation. But Jeung Bo-keun's injury situation does not look very good. Kim Tae-hyoung said, "(Jeung) Bo-keun's condition does not look good. It could take a long time."
For the time being, the starting lineup at catcher is expected to be Yoo Kang-nam, backed up by Park Jae-yeop and Son Seong-bin. Yoo Kang-nam has secured the starting role, but the backups will be chosen depending on circumstances and conditioning, and neither player has yet gained Kim Tae-hyoung's full confidence. The same applies to Jeung Bo-keun.
However, the thinning of the backup catching corps is one of Kim Tae-hyoung's concerns. Kim Tae-hyoung is also worried about this point. He said, "For now, I plan to think of the three players as an elite unit and build it that way. But if even one of the three gets injured, it becomes a headache," expressing his concern.
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