“This one thing is certain. I held out until the end.”
SSG Landers Oh Tae-gon (32) always carried gloves and mitts together. After joining the Lotte Giants in 2010, he went through KT Wiz and SSG, playing all seven positions except pitcher and catcher. After he was discharged from the police baseball team, he started as a backup third baseman for Hwang Jae-gyun (KT) and played all positions in the infield, and from 2018 he also took up all positions in the outfield. He said, “At that time, I might have been a so-called ‘spot player’. But instead of starting, he thought he shouldn’t be able to ‘see’ the position. He looked back, saying, “I tried to do well even in the position that was vacated by someone else, ‘as if it was my original position’ and better than the starting position.” 먹튀검증
The choices for survival made Oh Tae-gon a valuable player. After moving to SSG in 2021, he contributed to the team’s reconstruction as a first baseman, left fielder, and hitter who could hit a shot at a decisive moment for two years. Last year, there were not a few days that left a strong impression. Not only was he tied for 7th place on the team with 5 final strokes, but he boasted a shoulder comparable to foreign players such as Mike Tuckman (Hanwha Eagles, 9) and Yasiel Puig (Kiwoom Heroes, 8) with 8 assists. Last year, in the 6th game of the Korean Series, he also caught the last outcount to confirm the championship as a first baseman.
The dream of becoming a free agent (FA) has also come true. Free agency is a right and a dream that every player wants to exercise at least once. SSG signed Oh Tae-gon in November of last year with a contract worth up to 1.8 billion won (600 million down payment + 1 billion annual salary + 200 million won in options) for 4 years. Oh Tae-gon said, “If you are a baseball player, he has things he dreams of since childhood. If becoming a professional player was your first goal, your second goal would be to become a first-team player.” I want to praise myself for achieving my dream of becoming a free agent.”
The years he endured made him a more solid veteran. Oh Tae-gon said, “One thing is certain. I held out. I felt so many things. 144 matches are full of variables. When the main player is away, I don’t know what will happen if I do well. As a result, if the main player does not settle down, he can create synergy with me,” he said. “When I was young, I was impatient. But now I know. I know the saying ‘Experience is important’. Even if you miss a day, the opportunity is not over. If you are in a hurry, you will get tired first. After knowing through experience the opportunities and timing that will come to me during the long season, I take it easy with the thought that I must always be prepared.”