"Min-seok is doing as well as he expected," Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop said in satisfaction ahead of an exhibition game against the KIA Tigers at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on Tuesday. Kim joined Doosan through a surprise trade in November last year. As recently as the third overall pick in the first round of the 2023 rookie draft, he had high expectations as a runner-up to succeed Lee Jung-hoo (current San Francisco Giants) who was a high school senior. However, he failed to secure a position in the first division and eventually changed his uniform to "trade."먹튀검증

In return for Kim's trade, Doosan gave up Jeong Cheol-won (26), a right-handed pitcher who won the Rookie of the Year award in 2022. The loss was not small, but it meant that much anticipation was high for Kim. With the regular season just around the corner, the process is going smoothly. Kim Min-seok, who joined the team step by step from the spring camp, has solidified his position as a leadoff. Under the premise that he has to deal with a more difficult left-handed pitcher, Lee Seung-yeop reiterated that he has been doing better than he thought so far. "I want to continue testing as No. 1. If he becomes No. 1, he is more likely to play as No. 1."

Last season, Doosan's batting average at No. 1 was 0.278, ranking seventh in the league. Veteran Jung Soo-bin was the main leadoff, and his batting order this season is likely to be No. 9. He aims for a "connection synergy effect" with Jung Soo-bin by using fast-footed Kim Min-seok as the leadoff. He then plans to deploy slugger Kim Jae-hwan (Tongsan 263 home runs) in the second batting order to open the door for mass scoring.

Manager Lee Seung-yeop said, "(Kim Min-seok) has to lead the defense in the outfield and steal a lot, so his physicality is...In many ways, wouldn't our team get better if Subin played a role in connecting from the lower lineup to the upper lineup? he said. "Nothing has been decided, but I think we need to check until the end of the exhibition game."