“I hope our ‘Last Dance’ will end with a championship, just like Michael Jordan’s Chicago Bulls in the past.”
‘Geopo’ Choi Jeong (36, SSG Landers), who has consistently maintained third base since the 2009 World Baseball Classic (WBC), vowed to show his best performance at the 2023 WBC, which will be his last participation as a national representative.
Choi Jeong-eun left for Vero Beach, Florida, USA on the morning of the 25th, five days earlier than the main team departing on the 30th. He plans to join the Jackie Robinson Training Complex, where the SSG spring camp will be held, for self-training. Afterwards, on the 14th of next month, he will join Tucson, Arizona, the national team training camp.
Prior to departure on this day, Choi Jeong-eun said, “During the off-season, I built up my body faster than usual. When he arrives in the U.S., he starts training in batting and other skills,” he said. “Honestly, I am worried. He has no memory of playing an exhibition match in good condition. He has to find a sense of hitting quickly. Fortunately, there are many evaluation matches in the national team schedule. I want to quickly raise my sense of the game and get good results.” 스포츠토토
Choi Jeong is the only player in the Korean national team who is classified as a ‘professional third baseman’. Tommy Hyeon-soo Edmon (St. Louis) can play as third baseman, but Lee Kang-chul, head coach of the Korean national team, is planning a lineup with Kim Ha-seong and Edmon in the center of the infield and Choi Jeong in third base, so his role is expected to become more important.
“I will do my best to win every game. However, even if he loses, he will show a non-lazy appearance so that the fans can admit that he fought well.”
He continued, “I will not be able to participate in the Asian Games this year. Wild cards will be tough. I hope it will be the last dance by winning the championship like the NBA Chicago Bulls,” he said. “I will do my best without regrets. I think I will do well this time. We will create an atmosphere in which that is possible. I don’t want to repeat the atmosphere at the premiere 12 in 2019. I want to create a team atmosphere that does my best by raising the tension.”
He also revealed his thoughts on the team he belonged to last season. Choi Jeong-eun recalled, “It was mentally difficult to achieve a wire-to-wire championship that no one has experienced,” and “the pressure was as great as I wanted to achieve that record.”
In addition, Choi Jung-eun said, “Since we won the regular season wire-to-wire, the pressure in the Korean Series has been reduced. The 2023 season can be played with relatively less pressure. Of course, the goal this year is to win.”