'Chasing Choi Hyung-woo's 8-hit lead': Son Ah-seop excluded from first-division roster just 10 days after trade... Manager's diagnosis: "Seems psychologically pressured; will play in minor league to regain form" [Jamsil on-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

Doosan Bears' Son Ah-seop (38) was excluded from the first-division roster just 10 days after his trade.

Kim Won-hyung (52), Doosan's manager, met with reporters ahead of the match against Samsung Lions at Seoul Jamsil Stadium on the 29th and announced this, explaining, "We decided he needs to continue playing in the minor league (Futures League) to improve his condition."

The manager further stated, "Rather than setting a specific timeline, it seems he needs time to regain his form through actual games. As a veteran who was traded and hasn't performed well, he is under significant pressure and has many thoughts about needing to succeed, so he appears to be psychologically pressured."

Son Ah-seop, who holds the KBO League record for most career hits (2,622), was traded from Hanwha Eagles on the 14th and donned the Doosan uniform. He celebrated his first hit of the season with a home run in his debut game against SSG Landers and followed up with another hit the next day, the 15th, appearing to signal his revival. However, since then, he has only added one hit each in games against KIA on the 18th and Lotte Giants on the 23rd. His season statistics stand at 12 games, 36 at-bats, 4 hits (batting average 0.111).

On the previous day, the 29th, in the Samsung game, he entered as a pinch-hitter for Im Jong-seong in the bottom of the 9th inning with no outs and runners on first and second, trailing 0-3. After a tense battle lasting seven pitches against pitcher Lee Seung-min, he was retired with a swing-and-miss strikeout on a 129 km/h slider.

While Son Ah-seop has faltered, Samsung's Choi Hyung-woo (43) has been closing in on the all-time hits leader. Until last season, Son Ah-seop had 2,618 hits and Choi Hyung-woo had 2,586, a difference of 32 hits. However, Choi added three hits in the Doosan game on the 29th, bringing his career total to 2,614 hits, narrowing the gap to just eight hits behind Son Ah-seop.

Meanwhile, Doosan also excluded Kang Seung-ho and Im Jong-seong from the first-division roster on this day, registering infielders Ahn Jae-seok and Oh Myung-jin, and rookie left-handed pitcher Choi Ju-hyeong on the roster. Manager Kim Won-hyung stated, "(Kang) Seung-ho's backup appearances were inconsistent, so his batting condition remained stagnant. We plan to assign Oh Myung-jin the role that Seung-ho was performing."

Choi Ju-hyeong, who attended Masan High School and was selected in the 17th pick of the second round of the 2026 Rookie Draft, recorded 1 win, 2 holds, 15 innings, 13 strikeouts, 5 earned runs, and an ERA of 3.00 in 11 Futures League games, earning his first-ever spot on the first-division roster since his debut.

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*This content was translated by AI.