Doosan's 2025 draft pick was truly excellent. What if they hadn't selected the 20th-year-old '06s?

*This content was translated by AI.

They truly made an excellent pick. The scouting team should be given a commendation.

This is about the 2006-born duo of Doosan Bears, Park Jun-soon and Choi Min-seok. If it weren't for the performances of these 20-year-old '06s in the early part of the season, Doosan might have struggled.

Park Jun-soon and Choi Min-seok were selected by Doosan in the 2025 KBO Rookie Draft held in September 2024, with Park chosen as the 6th overall pick in the first round and Choi as the 16th overall pick in the second round. Park was the top-ranked position player overall, and he also won the Baseball Star Award at the '2024 Futures Star Awards' ceremony hosted by StarNews in November of that year.

Both players have appeared on the first-division stage since their debut season last year. Park Jun-soon recorded a .284 batting average (282 at-bats, 80 hits), 4 home runs, 19 RBIs, and 10 stolen bases in 91 games. Choi Min-seok secured a starting spot from May, posting a 3-3 record with a 4.40 ERA in 17 games (15 starts).

Now, in their second season this year, they are both exploding with potential and delivering top-tier performances in the league.

Park Jun-soon is recording dazzling statistics: a .389 batting average (3rd), 35 hits (tied 3rd), an OPS of 1.016 (6th), and 12 multi-hit games (tied 2nd). He is also strong in clutch situations, ranking 3rd with a .444 batting average with runners in scoring position. With 5 game-winning hits, he ranks 1st overall in the league, surpassing Moon Sung-ju (LG Twins) and Kim Do-young (KIA Tigers), who each have 4.

In second base defense, he showed some instability early in the season. Doosan manager Kim Won-hyung (54) said at the time, "Since he is feeling the pressure, we should resolve it by focusing on his hitting, which he can do well," and even moved him to designated hitter. As a result, he is now showing much more stable second base defense. He has committed 3 errors this season, but none since the 4th.

On the 26th against LG at Jamsil, he led the team to victory on both offense and defense. With the score tied 3-3 in the bottom of the 10th inning of extra innings, two outs, and runners on first and second, Park Jun-soon made a sharp play on Park Dong-won's line drive. Shortly after, in the top of the 10th inning with one out and a runner on second, he hit a walk-off hit. This was the youngest walk-off hit in club history, breaking the previous record set by Na Ju-hwan (19 years, 11 months, 25 days) with Park at 19 years, 9 months, and 13 days.

Right-hander Choi Min-seok's performance is no less impressive than Park Jun-soon's. He has made 5 starts, recording 3 wins (tied 4th), no losses, and a 1.82 ERA (4th). Notably, he has achieved 4 quality starts, ranking 1st among domestic pitchers, demonstrating consistent pitching. Overall, he is tied for 2nd with Huro (Samsung Lions, 5 times), Olle (KIA), and Alcantara (Kiwoom Heroes).

Manager Kim Won-hyung praised Choi Min-seok, saying, "I heard from within the organization that he 'throws well,' and I was curious, but indeed there was a reason for that."

There is one more Doosan player from the 2025 draft who is playing in the first division. He is right-handed pitcher Yang Jae-hoon (23), selected as the 6th pick in the 6th round. A graduate of Gaeseong High School and Dong-A Science University, he recorded 1 save and a 4.24 ERA in 19 games last year, and this season he has been appearing in all situations in the bullpen, whether in the lead-saving or chase groups.

His season statistics show 1 loss and 1 hold in 11 games, with a 4.91 ERA. Although he showed some instability by allowing runs in four consecutive games early this month, he has regained stability since the KIA game on the 17th, pitching scoreless innings in four consecutive games.

Doosan started this season with great difficulty amid severe hitting slumps. However, the impressive performances of these young bears have injected great vitality into the team, and they are gradually regaining their strength.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.