Lotte's decision was on target. Lotte invested a whopping 500 million won (488,500 U.S. dollars) in 2021 to embrace a "luxury prospect." He signed Na Seung-yeop, who had been spotlighted as a "genius hitter" since Deoksu's days, with a down payment of 500 million won (approx. This meant a tie for the highest down payment ever for a rookie batter. He was on par with Kang Hyuk, an "unfortunate genius" who joined Doosan with a down payment of 500 million won (approx.먹튀검증

Of course, he could not be full from the first try. Although Na played in 60 games in the first division in 2021, he showed disappointment with a batting average of .204 with two home runs and 10 RBIs. However, he showed signs of adapting quickly with a batting average of .292 with two home runs and 31 RBIs as he played in 42 games in the Futures League.

Lotte made the decision to look to the future. It only sent the player who finished his first professional season to the military. After joining the military, Na Seung-yeop appeared in 82 games in the Futures League in 2022 with a batting average of .300, seven homers and 64 RBIs, and 84 games in the Futures League in 2023, showing steady growth with a batting average of .312 with five homers and 57 RBIs.

More than anything else, playing many at-bats at Sangmu was a great nourishment to Na. It was a time to wake up to his batting performance after going through numerous trials and errors. "I think I got a lot better as I played in Sangmu. Although I am a Futures League player, I played full-time for two seasons and gained a lot of things as I participated in games every day. I think I learned how to overcome physical strength and slump."

After returning to Lotte in the run-up to the last season, Na was selected as the main first baseman by garnering trust from Lotte coach Kim Tae-hyung in the spring camp. Although he was in the second division due to lack of batting performance in the early days of the season, his challenges were brief. Having played in 121 games in the first division last year, Na showed remarkable growth with a batting average of .312 with an on-base percentage of .411 and a slugging percentage of .469 with 127 hits, seven home runs and 66 RBIs.

Ranked 14th in the batting average category with a batting average of .312, Na ranked second only to Victor Reyes (.352) among Lotte players. It was also impressive that he ranked sixth in the on-base percentage category with an on-base percentage (.411). Seven homers did not boast exceptional power, but given that he only hit one in the first half of the season, he also had a sense of long hit. Instead, he had 35 doubles, tying for fifth in the league, demonstrating the power of mid- to long-range shots.

Lotte's choice to join the military at an early age was perfect. Now Lotte wants to make another success story. Jo Se-jin, one of the top prospects, is back from military service.

Cho Se-jin is Lotte's fourth overall pick in the first round of the 2022 KBO Rookie Draft. Like Na Seung-yeop, he headed to Sangmu immediately after his first professional season in 2022. In 2023, the first year of Sangmu, he played in 30 games in the Futures League with a batting average of .214 with two home runs and 10 RBIs, which was not that impressive, but last year, he showed improvement in 93 games with a batting average of .261, eight home runs, 54 RBIs and nine steals. His on-base percentage was .370, which was more than 10% higher than his batting average.

Cho Se-jin, who hit a home run in the Futures All-Star Game last year, said, "I have a lot of things to supplement. I am spending every day seriously. I want to become a player who meets fans' expectations after being discharged from the military," expressing his desire to return to Lotte as soon as possible to show a better performance.

Of course, chances are extremely low that Cho will immediately take a spot in the outfield. Reyes, who set a new record of 202 hits last year, has already renewed his contract, and Yoon Dong-hee and Hwang Sung-bin are also highly likely to take a spot in the outfield. However, Lotte's trade of Kim Min-seok, a promising player from the first round, to Doosan can be interpreted as a message that it will provide a clear opportunity for Cho.

Last year, not only Na Seung-yeop but also young hitters including Yoon Dong-hee, Ko Seung-min and Hwang Sung-bin exploded their potential, and Lotte is likely to catch both the present and the future. If another promising player, Cho Se-jin, bursts out, pitchers' fear against Lotte's batters will surely grow. We wonder whether Lotte will be able to enjoy the "reserve effect" this year through Cho Se-jin, following Na Seung-yeop last year.