As the generational change of catchers progresses, young batteries born in the 2000s are emerging one after another. It is a combination of balls among younger players of the same age, away from the usual combination in which rookie starting pitchers are led by veteran catchers. Young catchers and pitchers, who do not have much professional experience, are growing well by putting them together in practice.

LG showcased its Song Seung-ki (23)-Lee Joo-heon (22) batteries in the match against Hanwha on June 27. This is the first time that both of them play in the first division in earnest. Song, who had the most wins, the first ERA, and the first strikeout in the Futures League last year, was selected as LG's fifth starting pitcher this year, while Lee Ju-heon became a backup catcher by impressing last fall.메이저사이트

LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop left all the first to fourth starters to veteran catcher Park Dong-won, but had Lee Joo-heon play as the starting catcher for the first time when Song Seung-ki, the fifth starter, took the mound. The move was aimed at improving the physical stamina of the main catcher Park Dong-won and ensuring Song's autonomy to the maximum.

"If Park Dong-won sits as a catcher, Song Seung-ki has to throw the ball as soon as Park Dong-won signs it, but I thought it would be much better for Song to throw what he wanted to throw," manager Yeom said. "Song Seung-ki thought about making Lee Joo-heon join before the spring camp to make him throw close to him because there were results he made in the second division."

In his first appearance, Song pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing one hit and five strikeouts. Lee Ju-heon, who showed off the competitive edge between Song and the starting catcher, marked the beginning of LG's successful "battery generation shift."

Kim Dong-heon (21) wore a catcher mask for the first time in a long time at Kiwoom this season. Kim Dong-heon played as Kiwoom's backup catcher in 2023, his first year as a member of the team, but was out for the season after undergoing surgery after suffering an elbow injury shortly after the opening of last season. While Kim Dong-heon was committed to rehabilitation, Kim Gun-hee (21), who joined the team, received many opportunities to take the backup catcher position.

Kim Dong-heon has alternated with Kim Jae-hyun as the starting catcher this season. At a match against KIA on April 25, he received the ball from starting pitcher Kim Yoon-ha (20), who is a year younger than him. As the battery consists of the youngest members of the team, the team had many trials and errors. Kim was shaken by nine hits (five homeruns) and seven earned runs in five innings on the day. Finally, Kiwoom manager Hong Won-ki replaced Kim Jae-hyun as the catcher in charge in the match against SSG on April 30, the second day of Kim's appearance.

Kim Dong-heon is gaining experience by working with experienced starting pitchers such as Ha Young-min and Kenny Rosenberg as well as young bullpen pitchers such as Jeon Joon-pyo and Park Yoon-sung. In the second division, Kim Gun-hee is training to recover the catcher's mask for the first division. Attention is focusing on what kind of young batteries Kiwoom, which has many starting pitchers born in the 2000s, including Kim Yoon-ha, Chung Hyun-woo and Yoon Hyun, will introduce this year.