Professional baseball player Shim Woo-jun (30), a shortstop for Hanwha Eagles, announced his return to action through the Futures League.

Shim played as the leadoff shortstop on 18th at Icheon Champions Park in a game against the LG Twins in the 2025 Mediheal KBO Futures League, recording no hits in three at-bats.

It was his first real game in 39 days since the match against the Kiwoom Heroes on the 10th of last month. After being hit on the left knee by the sixth pitch of the opposing pitcher Son Hyun-ki at 145 km/h in the fourth inning, Shim was substituted and diagnosed with a fibula fracture after two hospital examinations. He was advised to rest for two weeks and would need four weeks until normal training.

Following the diagnosis, four weeks passed, and he began full-scale training, and on that day, he played his first game in 39 days in the Futures League. Against LG right-handed starter Park Si-won, he grounded out twice to third base in the 1st and 3rd innings and was out on a pop-up to second base in the 6th. In all three at-bats, he focused on timing with Park's fastballs.

The results in hitting are not important. Movement in defense was crucial, and he looked remarkably agile. Notably, he made a jumping catch on Lee Tae-hoon's line drive in the 2nd inning. Shim, who was replaced by defensive substitute Bae Seung-soo in the 6th, is expected to return to the first team after playing in the Futures League until the 19th against LG, and then being ready for the game against the Kiwoom Heroes on the 20th.

Hanwha persevered well with a record of 16 wins, 15 losses, and 1 tie (winning percentage .516) in 32 games after Shim was out due to injury. Ha Ju-suk, who came up from the second team, filled the gap left by Shim with noticeably stable defense compared to last year. In the offense, he stepped up to the 2nd batting order, contributing to the lineup even more than Shim.

Ha Ju-suk has played 34 games (20 starts) at shortstop this season without any errors over 256 innings. Along with him, Lee Do-yoon also filled in as shortstop occasionally, sharing the burden. Since Shim's departure, there have been no errors at shortstop, and with solid defense and pitching power, Hanwha is currently leading the league. When Shim returns, the infield can become even sturdier.

With Shim's return to the first team, changes in the Hanwha roster are inevitable. Currently, one infielder has to be dropped, which is likely to cause considerable concern for the coaching staff. First baseman Chae Eun-seong, third baseman Roh Si-hwan, and designated hitter An Chi-hong are all established starters. Ultimately, one of Ha Ju-suk, Lee Do-yoon, or Hwang Young-mook must be dropped. It would be regrettable regardless of who is left out.

Lee Do-yoon, who can cover all infield positions and has excellent operational execution, is currently an indispensable 'super backup' in the team setup. Hwang Young-mook, who has made the most starts at second base, shows some inconsistency in batting compared to last year, but his ability to shine in crucial moments and his fearless hustle play boost the team’s atmosphere, making him hard to take out.

Thus, it could be Ha Ju-suk, as he currently has the best batting performance among the three and it's a waste to send him down to the second team. After Shim’s return, manager Kim Kyung-moon highly appreciated Ha Ju-suk's preparation attitude and performance, saying, "When (Shim) Woo-jun returns, I’m considering using (Ha) Ju-suk at second base. Defense is crucial, but as a team, we also need to strengthen our offense progressively."

If it comes down to it, keeping all three in the first team and removing one outfield player is also an option. However, that would likely result in the speedy substitute player Lee Sang-hyuk being dropped, and given manager Kim Kyung-moon's style of playing scrappy baseball in the latter half of games, this is also a concern. If Estevan Florial, the foreign batter who replaced the injured player, joins, it would allow Lee Won-seok, who is currently starting as center fielder, to return to being a substitute, but for manager Kim, who actively utilizes speedy players, having one substitute is regrettable.

Regardless of which player goes down, it is all regrettable. The fact that Hanwha, which has struggled with a lack of players throughout the dark period, is having such concerns is a significant change. Internal competition has intensified, and the depth has thickened.

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