Emotional Farewell: Coach Park Jin-man’s Heartfelt Tribute to His Tireless Team

[서울=뉴스핌] Reporter Park Sang-wook = Samsung coach Park Jin-man, who lost in the Korean Series, said, “(Our team) was classified in the bottom tier since the pre-season camp, but we worked really hard all year,” and added, “I am thankful that our players only looked ahead and ran forward.”

Samsung, which was considered the ‘two weakest team’ along with Kiwoom ahead of the opening of the regular season, lost to KIA in Game 5 of the Korean Series on the 28th and finished in second place, but fought well throughout the regular season.

Directed by Park Jin-man. [사진 = 삼성]

Coach Park explained, “It was difficult at the beginning of the season, including losing 8 games in a row, but the veteran players and young players were able to overcome it by riding the atmosphere. I think we achieved much better results than expected because of the atmosphere.” .

He first mentioned the achievements, saying, “The young players performed well and a new structure was achieved,” and then pointed out the shortcomings, saying, “It was the same last year, but I think we need to improve the bullpen.”

When asked if he had considered sending Koo Ja-wook out as a pinch hitter in the top of the 8th inning on this day with the bases loaded and two outs, he said, “If Koo Ja-wook gets a bigger injury, it would be a big blow to the player, so I didn’t think about it (as a pinch hitter).” He added, “I thought about Yoon Jeong-bin, but I thought about it a little bit. “It’s unfortunate,” he said.

Regarding his overall evaluation of this season, Coach Park said, “If you are running a long-term race, there must be stability in the bullpen. We had good starting pitchers (this year), but we will reorganize the bullpen and achieve good results (next year).”

Regarding the enthusiastic fans who came to Gwangju, he said, “I am grateful for the support and encouragement throughout the year, and it was an unforgettable year.”

psoq1337@newspim.com