Releasing → The regret of retirement and fostering the largest fish for prospective catchers were soothing...Thanks to the coach, I improved my skills

Jul 14, 2025

Releasing → The regret of retirement and fostering the largest fish for prospective catchers were soothing...Thanks to the coach, I improved my skills
Coach Choi Yong-je Deoksu during the Doosan Bears. Sports Chosun DB



Releasing → The regret of retirement and fostering the largest fish for prospective catchers were soothing...Thanks to the coach, I improved my skills
Coach Choi Yong-je Deoksu, who was called a "horror pinch hitter" during his time with the Doosan Bears. Sports Chosun DB
"Coach Choi Yong-je was good at coaching the catcher, so I was able to improve my skills."

Seol Jae-min, a second-year catcher at Deoksu High School, was a key player in winning the Blue Dragon. He beat out prominent seniors in the third grade and swept the Most Valuable Player Award, the Most RBI Award (13 RBIs), and the Most Hit Award (12 hits). He had a batting average of 0.600 in six games in the tournament.

Seol Jae-min started as the fifth batter catcher in the 80th Cheongryonggi National High School Baseball Championship and the weekend league King Wangjung match (co-hosted by the Chosun Ilbo, Sports Chosun, and the Korea Baseball Softball Association) held at Mokdong Stadium on the 12th and led the team to a 7-3 victory with three hits (one home run) and two RBIs and two runs in four at-bats.




Seol Jae-min is expected to become the catcher's biggest fish in the rookie draft in 2027. Seol Jae-min wore a catcher mask late in his second year of middle school. How did it grow to be evaluated as the biggest language in a short period of four years.

Deoksu High School coach Choi Yong-je helped a lot.

Choi Yong-je graduated from Jinheung High School and Hongik University and joined the Doosan Bears in 2014 as a nurturing player to achieve his dream of becoming a professional. Along with Yang Eui-ji, Park Se-hyuk (current NC), and Jang Seung-hyun, he is a player who thickened the depth of Doosan's home turf. As a right-handed hitter, he was able to produce hits, and in 2021, when Lotte Giants manager Kim Tae-hyung led Doosan, he used it as a pinch hitter. He was also called the 'Horror Pinch-Hot' with a batting average of over .400. The KBO has 112 games, a batting average of 0.280 (44 hits in 157 at-bats), and 25 RBIs.




With juniors continuing to join the team, it was more difficult for Choi Yong-je to keep his position as a backup. Choi Yong-je, who was notified of his release after the 2022 season and decided to retire, began his second life as a high school baseball leader. After going through Gangneung High School, he is now continuing his leadership career at Deoksu High School. At Deoksu High School, he meets a talented student named Seol Jae-min and is actively nurturing him.

Releasing → The regret of retirement and fostering the largest fish for prospective catchers were soothing...Thanks to the coach, I improved my skills
The 80th Blue Dragon High School Baseball Championship and the weekend league match between Busan High School and Deoksu High School at Mokdong Stadium in Seoul on the 12th. Deoksu High School's Seol Jae-min (42) is cheering after hitting a two-run shot with two outs and a runner on first base in the bottom of the first inning. Mokdong = Reporter Jung Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.7.12/
Releasing → The regret of retirement and fostering the largest fish for prospective catchers were soothing...Thanks to the coach, I improved my skills
The 80th Blue Dragon High School Baseball Championship and the weekend league match between Busan High School and Deoksu High School at Mokdong Stadium in Seoul on the 12th. Deoksu High School's Seol Jae-min (42) is welcomed after hitting a two-run shot with two outs and a runner on first base in the bottom of the first inning. Mokdong = Reporter Jung Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.7.12/
Seol Jae-min said, `Coach Choi Yong-je was good at coaching the catcher, so my skills could come. The catcher's defense didn't go well when he first came. So I didn't want to be a catcher, but the coach and the coach told me to die, and my body followed me without realizing it, so I think I made such a good result"I expressed my appreciation.

Seol Jae-min said "I was originally an infielder, but I did it because the catcher hurt his arm (in junior high school). "(When I trained the catcher), I said my posture came out well, so that's when I started playing catcher,' he said.




At first, it was not the position the catcher wanted, and I just didn't want to do it because it was hard, but now it has become a factor that increases the value of Seol Jae-min. The KBO League is currently struggling to find a catcher to succeed Kang Min-ho (Samsung) and Yang Eui-ji Park Dong-won (LG). While Kim Hyung-joon (NC) is expected to be the next Yang Eui-ji, there are voices that more young catchers should grow. Seol Jae-min is one of the most likely catcher prospects.

Regarding winning three gold medals, including the Blue Dragon Award, even though he was a second-year student, Seol Jae-min said, `I wasn't expecting it, but I think I was a little lucky because my older brothers were good and my juniors took good care of me. It's a bit burdensome to get the MVP award because I'm in the 2nd grade, but since I won three times this year, I'll try to win all of them next year," he said emphatically.

Releasing → The regret of retirement and fostering the largest fish for prospective catchers were soothing...Thanks to the coach, I improved my skills
Deoksu High School, who won the Best Player Award at the 80th Blue Dragon High School Baseball Championship and the weekend league match between Busan High School and Deoksu High School held at Mokdong Stadium in Seoul on the 12th, holds the trophy. Mokdong = Reporter Jung Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.7.12/




This article was translated by Naver AI translator.