The success or failure of SSG in 2025 depends on how exquisitely the balance of "achievement and fostering" is achieved.메이저사이트

SSG, an aging club, started a gradual change of generation from last year. While maintaining pitching and batting frameworks such as Kim Kwang-hyun and Choi Jeong, it gave young players more opportunities for growth than ever before. Through this, it confirmed the possibilities of young players including Cho Byung-hyun, Han Doo-sol (pitchers), Park Ji-hwan, Jung Joon-jae, and Ko Myung-jun (infielders).

However, the team's performance fell short of expectations. SSG had a fierce ranking battle until the end of the regular season, and even went as far as to the tiebreaker with KT (the final round for fifth place), but failed to advance to the post season due to upset loss. It missed one of its two goals.

SSG will continue its development trend this year as well, and will continue to challenge for fall baseball. First of all, it is important for young players who showed potential last season to emerge as key players. Cho will play in his first season as a "full-time finisher" this year. Ko and Jung will likely get more chances to play at first and second bases, respectively.

If a "new face" emerges from the catcher and outfielders, who were slow to grow, the team will be able to achieve the desired result again this year. In particular, SSG is raising young catchers such as Cho Hyung-woo, Lee Yul-ye and Shin Bum-soo. Among them, the standout catcher is expected to be used in the first division along with veteran Lee Ji-young.

In order not to be satisfied with the "half success" for the second consecutive year, Kim has to re-enter the top five list. He has a factor to improve his performance compared to last year. The average earned run average for SSG starters in the 2024 season was 5.26, ranking last in the league. Kim is the only one who pitched 162.1 innings as stipulated by Kim, who had a sluggish season compared to his previous career.

In particular, Robert Duggar, who was recruited as the first starter, failed to adapt to the KBO league, losing two games and posting a 14.73 ERA in six games, which resulted in a tangled plan in the early days of the season. This year, the team recruited Mitch White, a former MLB player, and re-signed with Drew Anderson to form a fastball foreign duo. On top of that, if the "native ace" Kim Kwang-hyun succeeds in rebounding, he will be competitive up to the third starting pitcher.

If Moon Seung-won and Park Jong-hoon, who were disappointed after the "non-FA multi-year contract," regain their skills that they had accumulated double-digit wins before elbow surgery, the SSG starters will also have more room to strengthen. Song Young-jin's step-up, who has been steadily gaining experience in the first team since the 2023 season, is also a factor to look forward to.

In the batting lineup, Choi Jeong, the league's leading home run king, and Guillermo Herredia, a foreign player, are expected to take the center stage, while Park Sung-han, a .300 shortstop, and Jihoon Choi, a built-in center fielder, are expected to support and fire. If Han Yu-som, one of the three non-FA multi-year contracts, finds a lost path in hitting, the destructive power of the SSG lineup cannot be ignored.

Playing fall baseball with a younger team is the most ideal picture SSG draws this year.