Another surprise star has appeared at Gangneung High School.

Gangneung High School lost to Deoksu High School 4-5 in the ninth inning in the final of the 2023 Shinsegae E-Mart Cup National High School Baseball Championship held at Incheon SSG Landers Field on the 11th. Gangneung High School aimed for the first championship since the Golden Lion in 2021, but fell to its knees after a close match.

Gangneung High School had an emergency on the mound as third-year ace Yuk Cheong-myung showed poor physical condition ahead of this tournament, and another junior Cho Dae-hyun was unable to play in the final due to a pitch limit. But a hero appeared in the turbulent times.

Park Ji-hoon, a freshman born in 2007 who just entered this year, made a surprise pitch in his high school baseball debut game with 6 hits, 4 strikeouts and 2 runs (1 earned run) in 7 innings. Park Ji-hoon allowed the team to turn over in the bottom of the 8th inning and missed the victory requirement, but he made a name for himself in the final stage of the high school baseball national championship.

After the match, Deoksu High School coach Jung Yun-jin also praised Park Ji-hoon, saying, “It was a surprise secret weapon that the opponent selection team didn’t even prepare for, but the ball was so good.” There was a power analysis sheet for Gangneung High School’s major pitchers on the wall that coach Chung pointed to, but Park Ji-hoon’s name was not there. Jaeho Choi, head coach of Gangneung High School, was satisfied, saying, “I made a rookie debut for the first time, and I feel good to think that I have made a big player. I think I will grow better in the next tournament.” 스포츠토토

Director Choi is a master of high school baseball who, after taking office in 2016 at Gangneung High School, which was called a baseball wasteland, raised pitcher Kim Jin-wook, who was first overall in the 2nd round of Lotte in 2021, and Ji-min Choi, who was 5th overall in the 2nd round of KIA in 2022. Regarding Park Ji-hoon, he said, “Jimin is a lefty, but he has a cute throwing style. Compared to his freshman year, Ji-hoon is more like a power pitcher and has a faster velocity.”

Park Ji-hoon said, “I was warmed up today and heard the word ‘starter.’ I want to learn the slider in high school and I want to grow my body through weight training. My role model is Shohei Ohtani, who throws a fast ball with confidence.”