After the joy of being named MVP at spring camp, the huge trade acquisition who was momentarily forgotten due to injury finally received an opportunity. Can Choo Jae-hyun fill the vacancy left by Jake Cave, who is suffering from a cold?

The Doosan Bears of the Korea Professional Baseball League registered outfielder Choo Jae-hyun to the first team roster before the game against the Samsung Lions on the 30th of last month, where he had been performing in the Futures League. Choo Jae-hyun made his Doosan debut coming onto the field as a substitute at that time.

The reason Choo Jae-hyun's registration to the first team three days ago is now attracting attention is because the starting right fielder Jake Cave has been removed from the roster due to cold symptoms. A Doosan official noted on March 31, "Cave has been excluded from the first team due to chills. He is expected to return in ten days."

Even with Cave out, Doosan's outfield will be covered for now by Kim Min-seok, Jung Soo-bin, and Kim Jae-hwan. While it’s not an immediate crisis from a defensive standpoint, Kim Jae-hwan is also balancing designated hitter and left fielder roles this year, and Cave's absence has inevitably weakened the middle lineup. This is why Choo Jae-hyun's registration to the first team, as he swung a batting average over 40% in the Futures League, is attracting attention.

Choo Jae-hyun graduated from Shinil High School and entered the pros as the 28th pick in the third round of the 2018 rookie draft by Nexen Heroes. Although he achieved his dream of being picked in a higher placement, the wall of professional baseball was high. Despite shifting to the outfield, he oscillated between the second team and the first team, and finally got called up to the first team in 2019 but managed to record only one at-bat against the KIA Tigers on April 6. Choo Jae-hyun spent another period in the second team before being traded to the Lotte Giants in April 2020.

In 2020, Choo Jae-hyun played 13 games before writing a career high in 2021 with a .252 batting average, 66 hits, 5 home runs, and 26 RBIs over 95 games. However, in 2022, he could only manage a .224 average in 33 games, failing to maintain his momentum, and he fulfilled his military duty by enlisting.

Choo Jae-hyun, who was discharged in July 2024, was not included in the plans of Lotte’s Kim Tae-hyung. Last year's first team appearances were limited to two games as a substitute. To make matters worse, he suffered an injury while playing in the Futures League, which significantly reduced his standing within the team.

A team that wanted Choo Jae-hyun was Doosan, which needed to inject young blood into its outfield. Doosan executed a 2-for-3 trade in November of last year, sending pitcher Jung Cheol-won and infielder Jeon Min-jae to Lotte in return for outfielder Kim Min-seok, Choo Jae-hyun, and pitcher Choi Woo-in.

Choo Jae-hyun, choosing the number '36,' which symbolizes Lee Seung-yuop, the beloved player of the Samsung Lions in the past, headed to the first team spring camp in Australia. During the camp, Choo Jae-hyun received a one-point lesson from manager Lee Seung-yuop, based on which he had an explosive performance in three intra-squad games with a .500 batting average (3 hits in 6 at-bats), 1 home run, 2 RBIs, and 2 runs scored. The moment he hit the game-winning home run in the second intra-squad match was particularly impressive. Thanks to this, he claimed the first MVP of the spring camp.

The obstacle to Choo Jae-hyun's higher elevation was injury. He suffered a bruise to his sternum during defense in the second spring camp practice games, resulting in the pain of an early return. After recovering, he picked up the bat again on March 19 in a Futures League game against Goyang, achieving a batting average of .467 (7 hits in 15 at-bats), with 2 home runs, 3 RBIs, an on-base percentage of .579, and a slugging percentage of .933, prompting a call-up from manager Lee Seung-yuop.

Ten days without Cave. Can Choo Jae-hyun become Cave? Furthermore, can he become the savior of Doosan, which has dropped to the bottom? Finally, an opportunity has come for the huge trade acquisition.

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