The competition for the home run king of old and new Geopo is drawing attention.
While veteran Choi Jeong 바카라사이트 (36, SSG Landers), who boasted a fierce sense of hitting in June, hesitated for a while, the next-generation giant Noh Si-hwan (23, Hanwha Eagles) fiercely pursued.
As of the 7th, Choi Jeong and Roh Si-hwan are leading the home run category with 19 home runs.
Until last month, Choi Jeong seemed to have a solo system in the home run race.
Choi Jeong-eun, who hit 8 home runs until May, took the sole lead in home runs by hitting 11 home runs in 24 games played in June.
Choi Jeong-eun hit his 15th home run of the season against the Doosan Bears in Jamsil on the 20th of last month, rising to the sole lead in the home run category. On the 24th of the same month, when he hit his 19th home run against the Incheon Samsung Lions, the gap with Park Dong-won (LG Twins) in second place was 5.
However, Choi Jeong-eun fell into silence after the Samsung War.
Choi Jeong-eun, who failed to hit a home run from the Samsung game on the 25th to the Gocheok Kiwoom Heroes game on the 2nd of this month, was replaced with left adductor muscle pain in the Incheon KIA Tigers game on the 5th, and was diagnosed with pubic muscle damage at a hospital inspection the next day. He hasn’t been left out of the first-team roster, but he’s hard to come by until this weekend.
While Choi Jung hesitated, Noh Si-hwan’s bat spewed fire.Noh Si-hwan hit 6 home runs in 10 games from Jamsil Doosan Bears on the 22nd of last month to Daejeon Lotte on the 6th of this month.
In July, he was even hotter. He hit 4 home runs in 4 games, including 2 home runs against Samsung in Daegu on the 1st. In the game against Lotte on the 6th, he hit a solo home run in the 3rd inning, succeeding in catching up with Choi Jeong and tying for the lead in home runs.
Choi Jeong-eun is highly likely to miss the game against Hanwha, which will be held at Daejeon Hanwha Life Eagles Park on the 8th and 9th. In front of Choi Jeong, there is a possibility that Roh Si-hwan will take the lead alone in home runs.
Regardless of who wins the first half in home runs, the competition between Choi Jeong and Roh Si-hwan is expected to heat up in the second half.
Choi Jeong-eun, who became the home run king in 2016, 2017 and 2021, is aiming to become the home run king for the fourth time in his personal career. Noh Si-hwan dreams of becoming the first home run king in his life, surpassing the personal record of most home runs (18) in a season, which he set in 2021.
Not only the home run, but also the RBI and slugging percentage of the two players are attracting attention.
Currently, in the RBI category, Choi Jeong leads with 58 RBIs, followed closely by Noh Si-Hwan with 56 RBIs. In the slugging percentage category, Choi Jeong is first with 0.577 and Noh Si-hwan is second with 0.564.