"Samsung and LG are worried about growing." No. 1 catcher is still in the dark... Gwangju Il High School Kim Sun-bin Cloudy and Deok High School Seol Jae-min Pleasure [High School Weekend League Opens②]

*This content was translated by AI.

The weekend league of high school baseball in all areas began last weekend. While most of the players have not risen significantly yet, the competition for the first place of catcher prospects has also begun in earnest.

The 2027 KBO Rookie Draft, which will be held in the second half of this year, is said to have abundant catcher prospects compared to previous years. There is no player with strong shoulders or exceptional in one way like Lee Hee-sung (19th, 12th overall in the second round of the NC Dinos), who was the No. 1 catcher last year.

However, it is evaluated that there are many catchers who can pick all the way down to the bottom. Starting with Gwangju Il High School Kim Sun-bin (19), who has stood out since his freshman year at the opening of the weekend league, Deokgo High School Seol Jae-min (18), Whimoon High School Yoo Jae-min (18), Gangneung High School Won Ji-woo (18), Busan National University of Science and Technology Kwon Hee-jae (20), Bae Jae-jae Im Tae-gang (18), Raon High School Cho Seung-woo (18), and Masan High School Lee Hyun-min (18) are mentioned as designated rights little by little.

Kim Sun-bin of Gwangju Jeil High School is leading the way. With a height of 183 centimeters and a weight of 90 kilograms based on the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA), he has shown batting performance by steadily playing since his freshman year. In particular, he hit 0.398 (33 hits in 83 at-bats) in 26 games, had two homers, 25 RBIs and three steals, had 13 strikeouts (four-hit ball with 18 walks) and a 0.509 on-base percentage and a 0.602 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) of 1.111 and was mentioned as a candidate for the first round beyond the top catcher.

This year, the catcher of the fielder's pool, who was disappointed overall, raised the possibility of an urgent team's first-round nomination. While the positions of Ha Hyun-seung (18) of Busan High School, Um Jun-sang (18) of Deoksu High School, and Kim Ji-woo (18) of Seoul High School are solid, there are not many fielder resources that can beat acclaimed pitchers such as Park Chan-min (18) of Gwangju Il High School, Jeong-il (18) of Daegu High School, Lee Seung-won (18) of Yushin High School, Lee Yoon-sung (18) of Masan High School, and Kim Kyung-rok (18) of Masan High School. This is why teams that need next-generation catcher resources, such as Samsung Lions and LG Twins, are mentioned early on.

KBO Scout A told Star News, "I think a team that needs a catcher may be quickly nominated between the middle and late of the first round and the beginning of the second round," adding, "The reason why Kim Sun-bin has the best evaluation is hitting." The catcher's defense is also very important, but it is not easy to succeed in the profession if his batting ability is poor. Kim Sun-bin explained, "It is the most mentioned because he has an attack power that even the main catcher can aim for in the professional game."

However, Kim Sun-bin's defense is quite divided among scouts. There are various criticisms that the defense is disappointing at the professional level, and that it is only overshadowed by the offense. Another KBO scout B said, "I have strong shoulders, but I'm disappointed in my ability to stop stealing." Blocking and other parts also seem to take a lot of time to adjust to the professional level," he pointed out. KBO Scout A, who disagreed, said, "Kim Sun-bin's defense is not bad. It's just that the offense is rated higher, but it's not a catcher with weak defense. "It's an experience I can't ignore that I've been playing as the main catcher since the second grade," he said.

It is too early for Kim Sun-bin to confirm his No. 1 catcher. This is because Kim Sun-bin's batting pace shows no signs of reviving since the end of last year. It is analyzed that it was also regrettable in the 2026 high school baseball strongest match to commemorate the construction of Seongnam professional baseball stadium, which he participated after visiting Taiwan's off-season training. KBO Scout C said, "The pace has not yet risen as much as Kim Sun-bin expected. I think I was stressed out because the throwing was very unstable even in Tancheon this time. "I played confidently in the match against Deoksu High School because my opponent noticed it," he said. "I feel like the pressure has also led to the hit. At the moment, I feel like I've lost a lot of confidence. Of course, it's just the beginning, so we'll have to wait and see," he added.

The fact that competitors are showing good performance throughout the winter is also the reason why the No. 1 catcher was in the dark. If Kim Sun-bin is currently cloudy, Seol Jae-min was happy. Major League Scout D said, "I would rather be a fan and Seol Jae-min stood out. "I felt it growing gradually in defense and hitting," he hinted. KBO Scout C also said, "Seol Jae-min was rather better in Tancheon. Maybe because I saw shortstop in middle school, my main focus was faster and my athletic ability was better than I thought. As an infielder, I feel like my experience has been maximized in catcher. In addition, he has more leeway in playing. He said, "It was the best catcher that has been mentioned recently, such as viewing the ground, agility, and blocking."

In addition, even Whimoon High School Yoo Je-min (18), who is highly regarded in defense, is as formidable as the competition for the largest catcher's fish. While each other is conscious of each other, we look forward to seeing which catcher will be chosen first in six months.

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*This content was translated by AI.