“The Lotte Giants select Jeon Mir, a pitcher and hitter from Kyungpook High School.”
Lotte general manager Sung Min-kyu selected Kyungbuk High School’s Jeon Mir with the third overall pick in the first round of the 2024 KBO Rookie Draft. The key word to note is “pitcher and hitter,” not “Jeon Mir. The Lotte team made the decision with the possibility of Jeon’s development as an “idoryu” in mind.
Jeon played in official tournaments this year as both a pitcher and a hitter. In 27 games this year, he batted .346 with 28 doubles, three home runs, 32 RBIs, a 0.513 slugging percentage, and a 0.519 on-base percentage. Pitcher Zemir has appeared in 18 games (67.2 innings) this year, posting a 5-1 record with a 1.32 ERA, 54 strikeouts, 23 walks, and a 0.85 WHIP.
His impressive performance at both the plate and at the plate earned him a spot in the recent World Youth Baseball Championship in Taiwan, where he helped the team win a bronze medal.
Manager Sung Min-kyu spoke very highly of Idoryu Jeon. The so-called ‘shilling’ is an amazing player in the eyes of Lotte.
“Jeon Mir is a player with excellent athleticism who can play two-hitting. I gave him high marks for his great competitive spirit on the field. We want to keep his path open as a pitcher and designated hitter. He said he is confident, so he will have to prove it,” he said.
After being selected by Lotte, Jeon Mir said, “I’m really honored to be nominated by Lotte, where I admire Choi Dong-won. I want to follow in his footsteps, even if it’s not as much as he did, and if I get the chance, I want to do a two-hitter. I am confident that I will do my best and do well wherever I go.”
“I didn’t expect to be selected as the third overall pick so soon, and I’ve been dreaming about it for a long time, so I want to cherish this moment forever. When I heard the applause, I felt very overwhelmed,” he said.
Jeon also revealed who he would like to face in the professional ranks as a pitcher and a batter. “As a hitter, I would like to meet Won Tae-in, a senior at Kyungpook National University. He has a really good changeup, and I would like to experience it once. As a pitcher, I would like to face my teammates from Kyungpook National University who went to the pros with me. They used to tease me at school, saying, ‘Why can’t other hitters hit your pitches,’ but I want to face them properly once (laughs),” he smiles.스포츠토토
The teammate he most wanted to learn from was Lotte closer Kim Won-joong. “I’d like to learn from him how to have the passion and charisma to hit batters on the mound. I can’t wait to go to the team and meet him.”
In his nomination comments, Jeon Mir also drew attention by mentioning Lotte Legend Choi Dong-won. In his nomination comments, Jeon said, “I thought it was very cool to see a pitcher who sacrifices for the benefit of his teammates and dedicates himself to the team regardless of his ability. I want to be a player like him, who puts all his passion and dedication into the baseball world and his team anytime, anywhere.”
Both Lotte and Jeomir emphasized that he is not the typical “Ido-ryu ballplayer” that has been around since the days of Shohei Ohtani (LA Angels). It will be interesting to see if Jeon Mir will be able to deliver the kind of results that will change the paradigm of the KBO.