Veteran 'including Kim Sang-soo and Roh Jin-hyuk' also changed! Lotte Futures Team conducts Imabari Spring Camp daily

*This content was translated by AI.

The Lotte Giants Futures team will leave for off-season training in Imabari, Japan. Its members range from 19-year-old 2026 rookies to 38-year-old veteran Baek Jeon-won.

Lotte said, "The Futures Spring Camp will be held in Imabari City, Ehime Prefecture, Japan from February 11 to March 7."

Thirty players, including 12 coaches, including Futures manager Kim Yong-hee, and 15 pitchers, three catchers, seven infielders and five outfielders, will participate in the camp. The Futures Spring Camp is designed to increase the effectiveness of training in a mild climate, strengthen the competitiveness of the team and motivate it.

Various age groups that are not seen in Futures Camp, where young players usually leave, attract attention. The oldest member is Kim Sang-soo, who signed a one-year FA contract worth a total of 300 million won last month and remained at Lotte.

He joined the Samsung Lions as the 15th pick in the second round of the KBO Rookie Draft in 2006, and he leaves the camp with his juniors who are 20 years younger than him. After spending his prime with Kiwoom Heroes, he joined Lotte in 2023 and hit his second heyday with double-digit holds for two consecutive years.

However, he was sluggish last year with two saves with three holds and a 6.38 ERA and 27 strikeouts in 36 ⅔ innings without winning in 45 games. Immediately after signing the contract, Kim Sang-soo said, "I'm happy to be able to stand on the mound again at the baseball stadium. We will do our best to contribute to the team's performance in the 2026 season with strong motivation," he said.

The same goes for Roh Jin-hyuk (37) who grinds his teeth and prepares for the 2026 season. Roh Jin-hyuk, who signed a four-year FA contract worth a total of 5 billion won with Lotte ahead of the 2023 season, has already reached his last year.

Three years at Lotte have been disappointing. Due to chronic back injuries, he has never been able to play at-bats and has only seven home runs and 67 RBIs in three years. Last year, he hit 0.270 (17 hits in 63 times at bat) in 28 games, one home run and five RBIs, and OPS (on-base plus slugging) 0.730, which was virtually close to the number of players outside of his capacity.

In addition, the majority of 2026 rookies will also participate. Nine players, including Shin Dong-gun, Kim Han-gyeol, Kim Hyun-soo, Kim Hwa-joong, Moon Jung-hyuk, Kim Heon-do, Kim Ho-beom, Lee Seo-joon and Kim Han-hole, are followed and evaluated for their skills.

Along with physical training, the team intensively performs technical training for each part. After that, he will play a total of eight practice games with the Japanese independent team to improve his sense of practice.

Lotte club said, "We have systematically prepared a training environment so that the team can take a leap forward. "We plan to increase the intensity of training through customized training for each position and bring out an increase in player skills," he said.

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*This content was translated by AI.