Home Run Factory owner not smiling as Home Run Factory reopens

SSG Landers slugger Choi Jeong-jeong has reactivated his home run arsenal.

Choi Jeong-jeong hit his 25th home run of the season in a home game against the KIA Tigers at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on March 3. Trailing 1-2 with two outs in the bottom of the first inning, Choi hit an “admitted double” over the right field fence off KIA starter Lee Yi-ri with the bases loaded, then in the bottom of the fifth inning, after fouling off four straight pitches from Park Jun-pyo with side arms, Choi lifted a 142-kilometer-per-hour two-seam fastball on the fifth pitch. He lined it to left for a two-run homer that traveled 110 meters.토토사이트

Choi even performed the “MacArthur Ceremony” by walking into the dugout and putting a pipe tobacco in his mouth.

If SSG had been able to hold on to the lead, Choi would have had the game-winning hit, but SSG lost 6-8 in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Choi led the league with 19 home runs through June, but an injury in early July limited him to just one home run before he was overtaken by Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha Eagles). Choi’s home run output went quiet until mid-August, and the gap widened.

However, Choi has added four more home runs in his last nine games to heat up the home run race. With 25 home runs, Choi is within five of the division leader Noh Si-hwan (30). Choi will be out of action until the end of September after being selected to represent Korea at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, so this could be his last chance to do so.

With the home run, Choi now has 1,353 career points. He is now within striking distance of breaking the record held by Lee Seung-yeop (1,355 points, current head coach of the Doosan Bears).

Choi went 2-for-3 with a home run, two RBIs, and a walk in three games, leading the Bears to their first win since the coaching change. Despite her performance, Choi was not happy about the team’s loss. Choi has signed two free agent contracts with SSG, including one with the former SK Wyverns. As the team’s franchise star, Choi is often referred to as the “Choi Jung Landers,” and he feels more responsible for the team’s performance than anyone else.

SSG’s recent four-game losing streak has left them 1.5 games behind the fourth-place KIA Tigers, and the pressure is on for Choi.