Kiwoom Heroes’ choice was a promising pitcher. Kiwoom, who sent Han Hyun-hee (Lotte Giants), embraced Lee Kang-jun.
Kiwoom announced in a press release on the afternoon of the 20th, “We have nominated pitching prospect Lee Kang-joon as a compensation player for Han Hyun-hee, who obtained free agent (FA) status and transferred to Lotte.” The nomination for the compensation player was made three days after Han Hyun-hee’s move to Lotte was confirmed.Regarding the background of Kiwoom, general manager Ko Hyeong-wook said, “Although he is a player who does not have much experience, he has great power at the end of the ball and excellent movement. 헤라카지노
Right-handed sidearm pitcher Lee Kang-joon graduated from Seorak Middle School and Seorak High School and was nominated by kt Wiz in the 2nd and 3rd round (22nd overall) of the 2020 rookie draft. Since high school, he has been receiving the attention of scouts as a submarine pitcher with excellent potential, and coach Lee Kang-cheol, who was the best submarine pitcher in the KBO League in the past, also expected Lee Kang-joon to grow.
In 2020, the first year of his debut, he only appeared in 4 games (6.35 ERA in 5⅔ innings) in the first team, and in the Futures League, he recorded an ERA of 5.59 with 29 innings, 1 win, 1 loss, 3 holds and 1 save in 22 games. While his ability to catch more than 1 strikeout per inning is excellent, Lee Kang-jun had to solve the not insignificant number of balls (29).
The following year, the team moved midway through the season. On July 31, the trade deadline, as Lotte and kt carried out a 2:1 trade, Lee Kang-joon went to Lotte. Lotte handed over infielder Oh Yoon-seok and catcher Kim Jun-tae to kt. At the time, Lotte explained the background of recruiting Lee Kang-joon, saying, “It showed a more stable appearance than the previous year and raised expectations.”
Even after the transfer, there were still not many opportunities to pitch. The regular season performance in 2021, including the performance at kt, was an average ERA of 10.80 in 15 games, 8⅓ innings, 1 win, and last year, an average ERA of 10.24 in 13 games, 9⅔ innings and 1 hold. Uneasy control was the biggest problem.
Lee Kang-joon planned to leave for a while after last season. He submitted an application to the Sangmu Baseball Team (Army Sports Corps) and enlists on May 8th after receiving a final notification of acceptance. However, prior to his military enlistment, he had to change his team once again.