Attention is focusing on whether the KIA Tigers, whose major resources acquire FA qualifications at the same time after this season, will try to select and focus on a "non-FA multi-year contract" during the season.

At the end of the 2025 season, Yang Hyun-jong, Choi Hyung-woo, Park Chan-ho, Choi Won-joon and Cho Sang-woo will be qualified as free agents at the same time. It is unclear whether Choi will extend his active duty, and Yang Hyun-jong, the "team legend," is almost certain to stay. However, Park Chan-ho and Choi Won-joon, who are already considered the "biggest fish" in the next stove league, are complicating Kia's calculation.스포츠토토

"MVP" Kim Do-young received great attention, but Park Chan-ho and Choi Won-joon were also the main players of KIA's combined victory last year. The two took responsibility for the team's centerline defense and played a great role in the batting line, moving between the upper and lower batters.

Park Chan-ho has displayed outstanding performance in offense and defense, winning the Golden Glove and defense award in the shortstop category in the 2024 season. He played in 134 games and recorded a batting average of 0.307 (158 hits in 515 at-bats) with five homers, 61 RBIs and 20 steals with an OPS of 0.749, and also played in five games with a batting average of 0.318 (seven hits in 22 at-bats) with an OPS of 0.830, spearheading his team's overall victory.

Choi Won-joon also showed off his defensive ability above the league's average, hitting 0.292 (128 hits in 438 at-bats) in 136 games, hitting nine home runs, 56 RBIs and 21 steals in the batting lineup. He was one shy of double-digit home runs, but he showed his long-shot power by hitting the most home runs in his career. Based on his regular season performance, he also joined the Premier 12 national team of the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) in 2024.

As interest in the two players is already heating up, it is expected that the price will rise due to the overheating of recruitment in the next FA market. With Yang Hyun-jong and Choi Hyung-woo, followed by Cho Sang-woo, the "biggest fish in the bullpen," securing FA qualifications, KIA may choose a strategy to catch at least one of the two players for sure.

In addition, according to the KBO's announcement on the 18th of last month, the total amount of KIA was 11.24 billion won, the second-highest among the 10 clubs. It was 177.38 million won less than the upper limit of the competition equal tax. Although the upper limit of 2025 will increase by 20% from last year, KIA has no choice but to choose and focus considering the rate of increase in the salary negotiations, which includes winning bonuses.

It is true that both positions do not have replacements to fill the gaps in the players, but the infield situation is fine. There are also infield utilities such as Kim Kyu-sung and Hong Jong-pyo, who have a lot of experience in the first division, and promising resources such as Park Min and Yoon Do-hyun that reveal their potential. It will not be possible to completely fill the absence of Park Chan-ho, but it can form a minimum competitive structure.

However, when Choi Won-joon is absent, the problem becomes complicated. First of all, there is no player to trust and assume the position of center fielder. Kim Ho-ryeong, who has strong defense capabilities, has seen his batting average remain in the 10% range (0.179-0.136) over the past two years, showing sluggish performance. Park Jung-woo is inexperienced, as he only had 145 at-bats for four seasons in the Korean pro baseball league. Unless a new face stands out this season, it will be difficult to set up an outfield that is at the average level in the league when Choi Won-joon is absent. Where will Kia's choices and focus go.