"The surgery went better than expected." Moon Dong-ju visits Daejeon, also meets Lee Jung-hoo and Kim Ha-seong in the U.S. "It was a great source of motivation."

*This content was translated by AI.

Moon Dong-ju (23, Hanwha Eagles) visited his home stadium to cheer on his teammates after surgery. He also brought a special gift to express his apologies and gratitude.

On the 2nd, Hanwha released a video on its club YouTube channel, "EaglesTV," showing Moon Dong-ju returning to Hanwha Life Ball Park after returning to Korea following his surgery.

On May 2, Moon Dong-ju started against the Samsung Lions but had to leave the game voluntarily after complaining of shoulder pain before completing the first inning. A detailed examination revealed damage to the right shoulder labrum, and he underwent labral repair surgery at the Kerlan-Jobe Clinic in Los Angeles, U.S., on May 20.

At the time, Hanwha stated, "We were informed that the surgery was successfully completed, and rehabilitation was scheduled to begin two days later." Moon Dong-ju finally returned to Korea on the 30th of last month.

Through his social networking service (SNS), Moon Dong-ju said, "I am well aware that a long rehabilitation period lies ahead. It will not be an easy path, but I will not waste a single moment. I will endure each day diligently and return to the mound as a tougher and better player than before. I believe that is the greatest repayment I can offer to everyone who has supported me."

This was the injury Ryu Hyun-jin suffered after advancing to the U.S. Although there were concerns that it could be fatal for a pitcher, Ryu Hyun-jin completed a long rehabilitation and returned to lead the 2019 Major League Baseball (MLB) in ERA.

Ryu Hyun-jin also commented at the time, "Dong-ju cried profusely upon hearing the MRI results. To ease his fears, I told him that by the time he woke up, the surgery would already be done. During the rehabilitation process, there will likely be some pain, and he must endure that pain to the extent necessary to return. He should be able to play without pain after getting through that. I think Dong-ju needs to take care of that."

After successfully completing surgery and undergoing rehabilitation, Moon Dong-ju returned to his home stadium. His first stop was the coaches' room. He exchanged warm greetings with the coaches, particularly sharing especially emotional embraces with bullpen coach Yoon Kyu-jin and pitching coach Park Seung-min.

Moon Dong-ju told coach Park Seung-min, "I've come back with nearly a 90-degree external rotation of the shoulder," to which the coach responded with a proud expression, "Take good care of yourself. Fighting!"

He then met with his teammates. Feeling apologetic, Moon Dong-ju also prepared special gifts for them. "Although it's unfortunate that I couldn't stay with the team until the end of the baseball season, the weather is extremely hot, and there are many people working hard, including the players, the manager, the coaches, and all the staff on the field, so I wanted to take care of them. I prepared this as a small token to encourage everyone," he explained.

Even while accepting the gifts, the teammates could not hide their affection for Ryu Hyun-jin. They exchanged words to express their joy and showed their happiness in their own unique ways.

Moon Dong-ju said, "I feel like the surgery went better than expected. Since the surgery removed everything that was causing me discomfort, I am glad." He also added, "I have been following the games whenever I had time."

There was also a special source of motivation. "I had always wanted to visit San Francisco, so I told Lee Jung-hoo to come visit. Before returning to Korea, I decided I should go, and I did. I was even able to watch batting practice, and he invited me to his home, where his mother even cut fruit for me. Kim Ha-seong also joined me, and we had a wonderful time that was a great source of motivation," he said.

Now, only tedious rehabilitation remains. It will be a difficult period, but it is an essential process for a comeback. Moon Dong-ju stated, "I must now focus on rehabilitation. I will continue to communicate via phone with Dr. Elatrache in the U.S. to establish a proper treatment plan moving forward. I plan to work hard on rehabilitation here in Korea."

The warm words from his teammates became a great source of strength. Moon Dong-ju said, "I received so many messages, and they truly gave me a lot of strength. For the first time, I felt in my heart that even the smallest messages can be a huge source of encouragement. I want to say thank you very much, and I will return well. Please don't worry."

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*This content was translated by AI.