*This content was translated by AI.
The Hanwha Eagles Futures team will depart for Japan on the 1st of next month and begin its 2026 Futures Spring Camp schedule in Kochi Prefecture, Japan. Yang Soo-ho (20), who was designated by Hanwha as a compensation player for Kim Bum-soo (31), a free agent wearing a KIA Tigers uniform, will also join the Kochi camp in Japan, not the Melbourne spring camp in Sydney, where the first team is located.
Hanwha explained about the Futures Spring Camp, "The Futures Spring Camp, which has the theme of Build Your Edge, which means to clearly set individual strengths of each player and strengthen them through repeated training, is composed of 12 coaching staff and 30 players, including Futures coach Lee Dae-jin."
"In particular, coaches Kim Jung-hyuk and Lee Jae-won of Yook Sung-gun also plan to participate in the camp to strengthen training," he added.
First, former KIA manager Kim Ki-tae joined the coaching staff along with head coach Lee Dae-jin. In addition, coaches Tsuruoka, Jeon Sang-ryul, Lee Dae-soo, Jung Woo-ram, Kwak Jung-cheol, Choi Yoon-seok, Kim Jung-hyuk and Lee Jae-won will help guide the Futures squad. In the training part, Jaemin Kim and Um Kang-hyun are accompanied.
A total of 14 pitchers were listed, including Yang Sun-ryul, Kim Gyeom-jae, Bae Min-seo, Jung Yi-hwang, Kim Bum-joon, Jang Yoo-ho, Park Bu-sung, Kim Seung-il, Kim Do-bin, Yang Kyung-mo, Won Jong-hyuk, Lee Dong-young, Um Yo-sep and Kang Kyung-woo. The catcher was joined by Heo Kwan-hoe and Jung Woo-sung.
There are a total of eight infielders, including Han Kyung-bin, Kim Gun, Lee Seung-hyun, Noh Seok-jin, Bae Seung-soo, Lee Ji-sung, Kwon Hyun-kyu, and Kim Joon-soo. There are a total of six outfielders, including Euro Gyeol, Choi In-ho, Kim Hae-chan, Lee Min-jae, Choi Yun-ho, and Lee Do-hoon.
Among them, rookies include pitcher Kang Kyung-woo, infielder Kwon Hyun-kyu, Kim Joon-soo, outfielder Lee Do-hoon, and Choi Yun-ho.
In addition, Yang Soo-ho, who was nominated by Hanwha as a compensation player for FA Kim Bum-soo, was also on board. KIA signed an FA contract with Kim Bum-soo for a total of 2 billion won, including a three-year contract period, 500 million won in down payment, 1.2 billion won in annual salary and 300 million won in incentives, before leaving the spring camp for Japan. The FA contract between Kim Bum-soo and KIA was announced to the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) on the 23rd. According to regulations, clubs that have recruited FA players must deliver a list of compensation players to the original team within three days after the announcement. KIA passed the list of 25 protected players on the 26th. And Hanwha, which received the list, nominated Yang Soo-ho on the 29th after filling up the three days.
Yang Soo-ho, who graduated from Boseong Elementary School (Daejeon Jung-gu Little), Gongju Middle School, and Gonggo High School, joined the team after being nominated by KIA as the 35th overall ranking in the fourth round in 2025. The down payment for joining the team is 80 million won. The annual salary is 30 million won. Last year, when he played for KIA, his back number was 59.
There is no first-team performance yet. He pitched in eight games in the Futures League last season, marking one loss, one save and a 4.70 ERA without a win. In a total of seven ⅔ innings, he had six hits (one homer), six walks, and four runs (four earned) with nine strikeouts and four runs (four earned) on the ball. The hit rate was 0.231. Hanwha said of Yang Soo-ho, "Last year, we recorded a maximum speed of 153 kilometers and an average speed of 148 kilometers. "I'm evaluated as having a good pitching impact," he explained.
Yang Soo-ho is currently staying in Amami-Oshima, a remote island where KIA's first-team camp is set up. An official from KIA said in a phone call with Star News on the 29th, "We are looking for a flight to Korea on the 30th." If he enters Korea on the 30th, he will spend only one day in Korea on the 31st, then change his uniform and head back to Kochi, Japan on the 1st. An official from Hanwha told Star News, "Yang Su-ho will join the Kochi camp in Japan."
Regarding the Futures team's spring camp, Hanwha emphasized, "We plan to raise our personal skills through repeated training at the beginning of the camp and then increase our sense of practice with up to nine practice games in the middle and late camp." The Hanwha Futures team, which will depart on February 1, will return home on March 4 after completing all camp schedules.
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*This content was translated by AI.
