Professional baseball player Ahn Hyun-min (22) of the KT Wiz expressed his thoughts on being selected for his first All-Star game.
Ahn Hyun-min will participate in the '2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO All-Star Game' held on the 12th at the Daejeon Hanwha Life Eagles Park. Although he did not make it into the best 12 selected by fan voting, he joined the All-Star game as a recommended player by the coach.
Ahn Hyun-min, who has recorded a batting average of .356 with 77 hits in 216 at-bats, 16 home runs, 53 RBIs, 42 runs, and an OPS of 1.113 this season, was selected for the All-Star game for the first time since his debut this year. In a pre-All-Star game interview, Ahn Hyun-min said, "It's really good and amazing. I want to play the game funly."
Ahn Hyun-min participated in the Home Run Derby on the 11th. He was considered a strong contender for the championship, but unfortunately only recorded 4 home runs in the qualifiers and missed out. Ahn Hyun-min, smiling, noted, "It was tough. It seemed harder than a doubleheader," and reflected on the Home Run Derby, saying, "If I had hit a few home runs at the beginning, I wouldn't have been as tense, but since no home runs came out for 1 minute and 30 seconds, I think I got a little anxious."
When asked if he resented Bae Jung-dae, who pitched for the batting practice, Ahn Hyun-min replied, "In fact, (Bae) Jeong-dae-hyung really pitched well. I think I just didn't hit well," adding, "Honestly, I didn't have a strong desire to come in first. As I kept hitting, I felt like I had to hit at least one before thinking about being first."
Ahn Hyun-min, who has shown remarkable performance in the first half of the season and participated in the Home Run Derby, said, "(Participating in the Home Run Derby) is on my mind. However, it's not that I'm worried because of the Home Run Derby; even without any problems, there could be times in the second half when I might struggle, and I’m worried that the Home Run Derby might be pointed out as a reason for that."
Ahn Hyun-min, who has shown great potential and had a hot first half of the season, expressed, "It was far beyond my expectations. And it was beyond my imagination. I think just being here is also beyond what I imagined," adding, "Actually, I had a goal this year. My goal was to participate in the Futures All-Star Game once. I had that thought, but I've surprisingly come up a level, and I'm just amazed."
"I think I, along with all players, won't feel much pressure when we perform well," said Ahn Hyun-min, adding, "On the contrary, I think there may be pressure when things slow down a bit. It will be important to see how well I can control that," and emphasized that he wants to continue performing well.
"I also have a desire to represent the national team in the future," said Ahn Hyun-min, "I think this desire is not just mine; it exists for all players who play baseball. However, right now, there are many excellent players in the outfield, and I know that I am rated lower defensively compared to them. So I think I want to participate in the evaluation match against the Japanese national team this year rather than the World Baseball Classic (WBC). If I do well there, I think it could lead to the WBC," expressing his ambition to represent the national team.
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