At the age of 36, he signed a multi-year deal. A year ago, he was a free agent on the verge of extending his career, but now he’s an integral part of the team. For Lotte’s Kim Sang-soo, 36, the multi-year contract was both a reward and a catalyst for responsibility.

This is Kim’s second spring training with Lotte. Last year, he had to prove himself again after being released by SSG Landers, but this year, he’s coming in as the centerpiece of a young pitching staff and a leader of the team.

Kim finished last year with a 4-2 record, one save, 18 holds, and a 3.12 ERA in 67 games. He pitched in the most games since 2019, when he recorded 40 holds, the most in a single season in KBO history. He showed his resurgence and became the leader of the pitching staff.

Kim was then rewarded with a multi-year contract ahead of his age 36 season. He signed a non-free agent multi-year contract worth up to 600 million won ($400 million in salary and 200 million in incentives). “The manager told me that what I showed last year helped the team a lot, so I wanted to be treated as a player,” said Kim, 안전놀이터 explaining that he first offered a multi-year contract.

It wasn’t a multi-year contract that the player could sign just because he wanted to.

The club recognized Kim’s contributions and thought prospectively. The club’s management team, including Park Joon-hyuk, thought about it together, and the top management gave the OK sign. “The manager, the head of the operations team, and the analytics team all listened to my concerns and accepted them, and the president did a good job of finalizing it. I’m very grateful,” he said, expressing his gratitude to the club.

“Obviously, the reason I was able to do well last year and sign a multi-year contract is because my teammates helped me a lot, and the fans who supported me from afar and said, ‘Thank you for coming to Lotte’ and liked me. I feel like I got this in return,” he said, expressing his gratitude once again.

The multi-year contract is not the end. It’s just a new beginning for Kim Sang-soo. As a senior group, he is looking for a way to lead by example and repay the club’s expectations and the fans’ love. “Obviously, we have to be responsible. I think we’re trying to think about how we can give back to the fans every day and try different things,” he explained.

He even filmed his own content, “Sangsik’s Eating Tende,” on the club’s YouTube channel, Giants TV.

The team decided to produce a second content if it received more than 70,000 views in a week. Kim Sang-soo himself was worried, but he was wrong. In less than a week, it had over 70,000 views, and as of February 16, 2024, it has over 150,000 views. “I’m trying to do what I can do, what I can have fun with, and what I can contribute to the team,” he says. “Fortunately, it helped in many ways, and the store owner liked it a lot. Fans are still coming in nowadays. It makes me feel good that they like it so much,” he laughed.

With the arrival of Kim Tae-hyung, the importance of the senior group grew. The senior group, including captain Jeon Jun-woo, is becoming more cohesive, and Kim Tae-hyung is also ordering it. Having played for teams that were postseason regulars like Samsung, Kiwoom, and SSG, he understands the importance of it.

“What I’ve realized while traveling around various teams is that a team can only go in the right direction if the seniors are united well, and if the seniors are united well, the younger guys will be stronger if they are united like that. “Since winter, I’ve been talking a lot with (Jeon) Jun-woo and (Jung) Hoon-yi, and we’ve also had a lot of conversations with (Jin) Hae-seo in the pitching staff. We talked a lot about what direction we need to go in to become a strong team, what kind of seniors we have and what kind of leaders we need to be, and we talked a lot about creating an environment where the juniors can play baseball well.”

The team’s different vibe has already been felt in spring training.

Even the young pitchers are noticing the change. “I think it’s slowly changing,” Kim said. It’s not something I can force, but I’m trying to communicate with each other a lot, telling them the good things about the strong teams I’ve seen,” Kim said.

The team is united and working hard to become a strong team. Kim Sang-soo himself is also working hard to stay competitive. “I don’t want to regret anything, so I work hard every day, and I’m still trying to grow every day. There are many young and good pitchers on our team, but I try to be as good as them. On the mound, you can’t face hitters with experience alone. I need to have pitches and control to stay competitive. As I get older, I try to be careful with injuries, and I’m afraid of them, but I’m trying to be less afraid of them and stronger,” he said, showing his determination to stay competitive.

The team’s goal is obviously to win the title, 카지노사이트 추천 but he also has a personal goal on his mind. “I’m a late bloomer in the pro ranks. I started when I was almost 30. I want to have a long career,” he said, adding, “I want to set records like the first 200 holds and 800 games before I retire.” Currently, Kim has 120 holds in 581 games. That’s a long way to go. But with his sights set on a higher goal, Kim is pushing himself to become stronger every day.