Who found a new home, will he reap the beauty of Yujong?

SSG Lee Jae-won hits a 3-run home run and is circling the bases in the top of the 6th inning of the professional baseball game between SSG Landers and LG Twins in the professional baseball '2022 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League' held at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Songpa-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 6th.

SSG catcher Lee Jae-won (35) moves to Daejeon and makes a new start with the Hanwha Eagles.

Jaewon Lee, who was only a backup at SSG in the 2023 season, chose to voluntarily release himself after the season to extend his active career.

Lee Jae-won, who was looking for a new team, was recently called up by Hanwha and signed a contract with the first team's minimum annual salary of 50 million won. Lee Jae-won, who gave up being a one-club man and moved to the Eagles Corps, is trying to burn his last flame.

Jaewon Lee, a graduate of Incheon High School, joined SK Wyverns (now SSG Landers) as the first round pick in the 2006 draft.

At the time, SK was such a promising catcher that they chose Lee Jae-won over Dongsan High School's Ryu Hyun-jin.

Lee Jae-won, who was unable to get a chance in his early professional career because he was overshadowed by prominent catchers such as Park Kyung-wan and Jeong Sang-ho, has steadily established himself as the team's starting catcher since the 2014 season.

He led the pitchers with the lead he learned while working with top catcher Park Kyung-wan, and has consistently hit double-digit home runs since 2014, earning a passing grade in terms of offense.

In 2018, he had his best year yet with a batting average of 0.329, 17 home runs, and 57 RBIs in 130 games, leading the team to the Korean Series win.

Afterwards, he hit the jackpot by signing a free agent contract with SK for a total of 6.9 billion won over 4 years. However, it failed to meet expectations afterwards.

2019 (0.269, 12 home runs) and 2021 (0.280, 3 home runs, 30 RBI) were better, but he hit only 0.185 in 80 games in 2020, and barely exceeded .200 with a batting average of 0.201 in 2022. He appeared in only 27 games for the first team this year and had a batting average of 0.091.

SSG catcher Lee Jae-won is throwing his body to catch KIA Han Jun-su's bunt ball with KIA's attack on first base in the top of the 5th inning of the 2023 Shinhan SOL KBO League game between KIA Tigers and SSG Landers held at SSG Landers Field in Michuhol-gu, Incheon on the afternoon of the 5th.

Lee Jae-won, who gave up his second free agent status after last season, became a free agent again after this season, but was unable to apply for free agency due to his noticeably reduced skills. Age was also a considerable obstacle. In the end, he requested release from the club and headed to Hanwha.

Hanwha has starting catcher Choi Jae-hoon. Choi Jae-hoon, who signed a five-year free agent contract worth up to 5.4 billion won after the 2021 season, is likely to use the starting lineup next year as well. Jaewon Lee is expected to serve as a backup to Jaehoon Choi along with young blood Park Sangeon.

Hanwha has had decent catchers such as Shin Kyung-hyun, Jeong Beom-mo, Jo In-seong, Cha Il-mok, and Heo Do-hwan, but has suffered from a shortage of veteran catchers since the 2020s when it declared rebuilding.

Jaehoon Choi had a lot of experience with the Doosan Bears, but it was not easy for him to overcome the crisis alone. However, with Jaewon Lee joining, his catcher depth was strengthened.

Looking at Lee Jae-won's performance over the past few years, it is difficult to expect him to play a big role next season. However, he is expected to help his team in times of crisis by comforting his juniors and passing on his experience.

In particular, Lee Jae-won has five championship rings, so it is expected that he will have the effect of transplanting the championship DNA that the Hanwha players do not have.

For Lee Jae-won, the Hanwha movement also has great meaning. Although he has achieved quite a few achievements so far, he has completely lost his reputation due to poor performance in recent years, and he needs to reap the joys of his remaining active life.

Jaewon Lee has been quietly preparing for his future to the extent that he has minimized contact with reporters after the Hanwha move was announced.

It remains to be seen whether Lee Jae-won, who will be spending his 19th professional season in Daejeon, will regain his honor next season. 카지노사이트