Lotte infielder Bae Seong-keun (28), who was a promising prospect, decided to retire early. Along with the premature farewell, good news once again caught the attention of baseball fans.

On the 31st, Lotte announced the retirement of Bae Seong-geun and said, “We plan to donate 10 million won for the 2nd group players in difficult circumstances.”

After graduating from Ulsan Technical High School, Bae Seong-geun wore a Lotte uniform with the 40th rank in the 2nd 4th round in the 2014 rookie draft.

Bae Seong-keun, whose main position is a shortstop, is expected to take center stage in the infield. However, he only had a batting average of 0.180, 33 hits, 1 home run and 11 RBIs in 141 first-team games until last season. In 2021, he even made a decision to briefly switch to a pitcher, but last season he returned to the fielder and finished the season after playing 22 games in the first team. And he decided to end his active career.

Bae Seong-geun revealed the reason for his retirement in a phone call with a reporter, saying, “I tried several attempts to overcome myself in the process of worrying about the future, but the results were not good.”

It was his last ‘struggling’ to turn into a pitcher last year. Bae Seong-geun said, “I tried to become a pitcher to make a turning point in my life. He looked back and said, “I did it with the mindset of trying everything.”

What Bae Seong-keun really wanted was a ‘Lotte shortstop’. But he rarely has a place in the first team. There is Lee Hak-joo, who wore a Lotte uniform as a trade last year, and Noh Jin-hyeok, who transferred to a free agent (FA) contract during the off-season.

Bae Seong-geun said, “Lotte shortstop was my dream and pride, but I thought that it was meaningless to continue my career as a pitcher because I thought I couldn’t do that. Just because he held on to his seat, he decided that it could not be seen as progress.” There was a dissuade from the surroundings, but Bae Seong-geun’s will was firm.

Now, I decided to open up a second life. Bae Seong-geun, who said, “There is a field I want to try,” said, “I can’t tell you because I still have to study and find out more, but it’s not related to baseball.”

Bae Seong-geun’s annual salary for the 2022 season was 42 million won. He decided to donate 10 million won in a small amount because he had lived in District 2 for a long time. He said, “Since my time in the 2nd Army is getting longer, I couldn’t afford to buy a bat or equipment to my heart’s content. I wanted to help those juniors. He also received a lot of attention and love from Lotte fans, and while thinking about how to return it, he decided that it would be better to help his juniors.” He said he hoped this donation would continue, not a one-off. 메이저놀이터

Bae Seong-geun said, “I am grateful to the many people who have helped me in the meantime. I will never forget that feeling and will always engrave it in his heart.” On the 14th, Bae Seong-geun, the ‘new groom’, who posted a picture, said, “I am grateful to my wife who believed in me and supported me in making this decision.”

He plans to visit Sajik Stadium often to support Lotte. Bae Seong-geun laughed, saying, “I’ll contact senior Lee Dae-ho and come with him.”