The backup players of the professional baseball LG Twins have consistently recorded their first points in their professional debuts. Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop has been paying more attention to the stamina management of the starters as injuries have arisen recently. Given the opportunity, the backups recorded unforgettable debut first hits and first runs. Outfielder Ham Chang-geon (24) and catcher Kim Sung-woo (22) are the protagonists.

Ham Chang-geon of the professional baseball LG Twins started as the eighth left fielder in the game against Kiwoom Heroes held at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on the 15th. Before the game, Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop explained, "Moon Seong-joo feels a bit heavy in the waist. He was excluded to prevent injury. He can be a pinch hitter." Ham Chang-geon was called up to the first team on the 14th and received his second starting opportunity of the season.

In his first at-bat in the second inning, Ham Chang-geon grounded out to the second baseman, but in the fourth inning, with two outs and a 2-0 lead, Song Chan-ieh walked, and he hit a single to left against starting pitcher Ha Young-min, consolidating the opportunity to have runners on first and third base. Following that, Koo Bon-hyeok hit a timely hit to center, extending the lead to 3-0.

In the sixth inning, with one out and a runner on first base, Ham Chang-geon hit a double that hit the right-center fence, bringing the runner from first base home in the eighth inning with two outs and a runner on second base. He recorded a crucial point, extending the score from 4-2 to 5-2, marking Ham Chang-geon's debut first run. He was replaced by pinch runner Choi Won-young at second base, finishing with 2 hits and 1 run batted in (RBI) in 4 at-bats, making a significant contribution from the lower batting order.

Ham Chang-geon was chosen by LG in the second round of the 7th round of the 2020 rookie draft with the overall 63rd pick. He has been playing in the Futures League and debuted in the first team last year, appearing in 15 games with a batting average of .143 (2 hits in 14 at-bats). This year, he was called up to the first team in early April, but after recording no hits in 6 at-bats over 2 games, he quickly returned to the second team. In his second call-up, he showed a changed performance.

After the game, Ham Chang-geon said, "It's a day I will never forget as I recorded my first run in my first-team debut, my first extra-base hit (double), and my first multi-hit game." The hit in the fourth inning was his first hit of the season. He mentioned, "I hit a splitter with two strikes, and the training I did while in the second team on handling situations after two strikes has yielded good results."

Ham Chang-geon said, "Since I came up to the first team for a short time and then went down to the second team, I trained a lot to deal with fastballs. I thought it was necessary to handle the fastballs of first-team pitchers. That aspect seems to help in competing against first-team pitchers."

He also expressed his gratitude, saying, "While I was in the second team, I am very grateful to the manager, coaches, and other staff. I have many shortcomings, but I am thankful for the opportunities I was given and for the support that helped me to stay motivated. Since coming up to the first team, everyone has helped me relax, and that has been a great help. I am thankful to so many people."

Ham Chang-geon stated, "There are still many areas I need to improve on, and I am just at the starting stage, but I will strive to get better and become a player who contributes to the team wherever I am."

On the previous day (14th), catcher Kim Sung-woo was called up to the first team for the first time this season. Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop mentioned, "We need to give Park Dong-won some rest and manage him," explaining the reason for including the third catcher in the roster.

When backup Lee Joo-heon teams up with the fifth starter Song Seung-ki, Park Dong-won waits as a pinch hitter. However, if Park Dong-won comes out as a pinch hitter during the game, he has to catch for the next 3-4 innings. Manager Yeom explained, "If we use Dong-won as a pinch hitter, we can just take him out to rest him after that, and I called up Sung-woo to use another catcher."

Kim Sung-woo took the field as a substitute immediately after being called up and participated in the game against Kiwoom on the 14th. With LG leading 4-0 in the sixth inning, with no outs and runners on first and third, Park Dong-won came up as a pinch hitter. A wild pitch and a fielding error by the shortstop on Park Dong-won's pop-up allowed the score to stretch to 6-0. Park Dong-won was replaced as a pinch runner, and during the defensive inning at the top of the seventh, when the score was 9-0, Kim Sung-woo donned the catcher’s mask and took the field.

In the seventh inning, with one out and a runner on second base, Kim Sung-woo hit a single to right, bringing the runner at second base home. It was Kim Sung-woo's debut first hit and first run batted in (RBI) record. He achieved an unforgettable record in his first appearance of the season.

Kim Sung-woo was drafted to LG with the overall 67th pick in the second round of the 2022 rookie draft. He made his first-team debut last July, appearing in 4 games with no hits in 5 at-bats. This year, he is batting .440 in 19 games in the Futures League, with 21 hits in 52 at-bats.

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