Lotte Giants infielder Bae Seong-geun (28), who announced his retirement last month, revealed the background of his retirement and his gratitude to the fans.

Bae Seong-geun posted a long message on his Instagram on the 1st, including the process of deciding to retire and future plans.

Bae Seong-geun said, “I wanted to play for a team called Lotte Giants since I was in school, and I wanted to become a baseball player loved by many people by taking a position as a shortstop. Lotte’s shortstop was my dream and pride.”

He continued, “For the past 19 years, from the 3rd grade of elementary school until now, I have worked harder than anyone else to achieve this dream, and it seems that I have put a lot of effort and time into it. Unlike my heart, the results did not follow my heart, and I had a difficult 2022 season last year. In a situation where my worries were deepening, I tried to find another breakthrough by converting to a pitcher, but for me, during the off-season, I felt that life as a player was meaningless unless I was a shortstop.”

Bae Seong-geun said, “Forcing me to hold a position I don’t want will not help my personal development or the team, so now I know that baseball is not my path, so I’m going to study and challenge a new field.”

He said, “I hesitated and thought about it several times until the day before I told the club. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t sad, but I try not to regret it. In order not to regret it, I will try harder in the future than now.”

Bae Seong-geun said, “I really want to say thank you to the Lotte Giants team for giving me the opportunity to play baseball in Busan for 9 years. Also, I was able to play baseball happily thanks to my teammates who were like family and always depended on me.” I really want to say thank you for your support.”

Bae Seong-geun, who wore a Lotte uniform for the 2nd 4th round in 2014, had a batting average of 0.180, 1 home run and 11 RBIs in the first team until last season.

In 2021, he turned to a pitcher and pitched in two games, but returned to the fielder again last year and had a batting average of only 0.128 in 22 first-team games.

Meanwhile, Bae Seong-geun plans to donate 10 million won to the Futures team.

▼The following is the full text of Bae Seong-geun’s social media post

. This is Lotte Giants Bae Seong-keun. I’m sorry to announce the news so suddenly to the many people who have supported me. I am writing this because I think it is time to finish the first act of my life.

Ever since I was in school, I wanted to play for a team called the Lotte Giants, and I wanted to become a baseball player loved by many people by taking a position as a shortstop. Becoming a shortstop for the Lotte Giants was my dream and pride. For 19 years, from the 3rd grade of elementary school until now, I have worked harder than anyone else to achieve this dream, and it seems that I have put a lot of effort and time into it. Unlike my heart like that, the results didn’t follow like my heart, and I had a hard 2022 season last year. In a situation where I was deeply troubled, I tried to find another breakthrough by turning into a pitcher, but for me, during the off-season, I felt that life as a player was meaningless unless I was a shortstop.

Forcing myself to stay in a position I don’t want doesn’t seem to help my individual development or the team.

Even the day before I told the club, I hesitated and thought about it several times. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t sad, but I don’t want to regret it. In order not to regret it, I plan to make more efforts than now.

I won’t make any other excuses. I lacked a lot, and I tried harder than anyone else to fill that deficiency, but it seems that my efforts didn’t come to fruition.

I would like to express my gratitude to the Lotte Giants team for giving me the opportunity to play baseball in Busan for 9 years. Also, I was able to enjoy baseball thanks to my teammates who always supported me like family.

I can’t play together anymore, but I will always support you off the field. Thanks to the club and colleagues, I was able to create really valuable experiences and memories. And most of all, I would like to say thank you to all the Lotte Giants fans and baseball player Bae Seong-geun’s fans who have been the driving force behind me running for 9 years for their support.
Every word of encouragement you gave to me, who was lacking a lot, gave me great strength. Thank you for making me feel how much power that one word of support is.

I will now support the Lotte Giants and my teammates from the same fan’s point of view. I will become a person who can live by giving with a grateful heart without forgetting the interest and love of the many people who supported and helped me while I was playing baseball. 바카라