Hanwha infielder Jung Eun-won (23) caught the eye of then manager Han Yong-deok for his stable defense in the first year of his debut in 2018. Coach Han Yong-deok praised Chung Eun-won from the spring camp, saying, “Unlike a rookie, the defense is smooth.” He was selected as the successor to Jeong Geun-woo and has established himself as Hanwha’s main second baseman since 2019. 

Every year, his batting ability and starting pitch improved, and in 2021 he also won the Golden Glove for second baseman. It was the first pure Hanwha player to receive the award. Although there were ups and downs in the early season last year, he showed off his batting productivity above the league average with a batting average of 2.76, 140 hits, 8 homers, and 49 RBIs in 140 games. On his hitting side, he was well on track. 

However, his defense, which was solid during his rookie year, was shaken. The number of mistakes, which were 13 in 2019 and 2021, when he played full-time without injury, increased to 17 last year. As a second baseman, his fielding percentage dropped in 2020 (.988), 2021 (.975), and 2022 (.968).

During his first spring camp, which he finished in Arizona, USA, Chung Eun-won spent a lot of time in defensive training. Even after team training was over, he volunteered for additional training with defense coach Choi Yun-seok every day, and had time to express his concerns about defense and resolve them. 

Jeong Eun-won said, “I came to the camp and received a lot of balls and became more confident. I am proud of myself because I can see that I have improved,” she said with a laugh. “Last year, psychologically, my confidence in defense was very low. It wasn’t a comfortable or stable form that I felt myself when catching the ball. I pondered and analyzed the reason with the coach, and now it has been resolved a lot.” 

Coach Yoon-seok Choi said, “Since Eun-won’s defense was a little weak last year, I could see that he was restraining himself and shrinking compared to his ability. He is not a player with bad defense, but he paid a lot of attention to the fact that even a single mistake would cause many stories to come out. I forgot those words and tried to fill in the neglected part while sticking to the basics. He himself continued to volunteer for additional training and tried to instill confidence in him as his coach.” 

Jeong Eun-won is breathing with three candidates for shortstop in the camp. Veteran Oh Seon-jin, who returned to Hanwha as a free agent after going to Samsung in a trade, existing prospect Park Jung-hyun, and 19-year-old Moon Hyun-bin, who joined as a rookie this year, form a keystone with Jung Eun-won during defensive training.  안전놀이터

Jeong Eun-won said, “(Oh Seon-jin, Park Jung-eun) are players I played with, so there is nothing to worry about in terms of breathing.” Of course, the skill level is good, but it should be said that it is confident, but it has a spirit that is not like a rookie. I am a senior in my attitude toward baseball, but I learn by watching and feeling it one more time. That kind of mindset is Hyun Bin’s great strength,” he praised. 

Jeong Eun-won, who has become a pro in the sixth year, said, “Since I was a rookie, I have been to the first-team camp without exception. When I was a rookie, if I just played my baseball without thinking, now is the time to feel responsible for the team,” he said confidently. When asked about his will to win the second baseman Golden Glove, he gave a strong answer, “I will try hard.”