Rookie catcher Lee Yul-ye (18) of the SSG Landers of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) has set his sights on becoming a franchise catcher with a permanent club number.
SSG held the ‘2025 Rookie Player Training and Signing Ceremony’ at SSG Futures Field in Ganghwa, Incheon, on March 19. Ten rookies, including Lee Yul-ye, who joined SSG as a first-round (8th) pick in the 2025 Rookie Draft, attended the event to learn what they need to know as rookies and celebrate their first start as professional baseball players with their parents.
Lee is a big-bodied catching prospect who batted .335 (71-for-212) with three home runs, 41 RBIs, 59 runs scored, three stolen bases, and a .920 OPS in 75 games at High-A. He was considered the best catcher in the draft, and SSG had no hesitation in selecting him with the eighth overall pick. This is the fourth time SSG has selected a catcher with the first pick of the rookie draft, following the 2001 first-round selection of Sang-ho Jung, the 2006 first-round selection of Lee Jae-won (Hanwha), and the 2015 first-round selection of Lee Hyun-seok.
Lee Yul-yeh, who is expected to be the next main catcher, said,
“When I came to the team and worked out with my brothers and seniors, the atmosphere was really good and everyone took care of me. I feel like I’m integrating well into the team atmosphere. I’m working out a lot now. I’m a little nervous and a little tired, but I’m working hard,” he said of joining the team.
On being SSG’s first pick, Lee Yul-ye said, “I’m very grateful to have been selected. I feel like there’s no pressure to do better now that I’m on the team. Now I have to show my skills on the baseball field to meet the expectations. I’ll have to work out harder. I haven’t met Lee Ji-young and Kim Min-sik yet. I worked out with Cho Hyung-woo and Shin Beom-soo. 카지노사이트 They are really good and I have a lot to learn from them. I think I’ll be able to play well if I learn along with them,” she said about her responsibilities.
SSG already has two first-team catchers in Lee Ji-young and Kim Min-sik. The backup catchers, Cho Hyung-woo and Shin Beom-soo, are also solid. As a rookie, it might not be easy for Lee Yul-yeh to break through the solid catching lineup and get a chance right away. However, Lee says, “I was worried when I first came in. But everyone is taking good care of me and I’m learning a lot, so I’m not worried about that, but I’m thinking that I’m a rookie and I need to learn. At the same time, I always have the desire to win, so if I do what I can do, I hope things will go well,” Lee said, vowing not to lose the competition for the position.
Lee Yul-ye, who has received very high praise for his defense, said,
“I think my strength is that I have a high level of completeness and overall balance in the catcher’s defense. I personally don’t think I have any particular deficiencies in my defense. My pop time has been as high as 1.80 seconds, and I average around 1.8 to 1.9 seconds. At the plate, I think my power and contact are my strengths,” he explained. “I watch a lot of videos of Takuya Kai (SoftBank) from Japan. His nickname is ‘Kai Cannon’ and I would be honored if I could get a nickname like that. I hope to show that kind of good play in the first team as soon as possible.”
Kai, who Lee says he looks up to a lot, won the Japan Series MVP in 2018 with a 100 percent stolen base success rate (6-of-6). “Of course, I think any catcher would have imagined that at least once,” Lee said. I think defense is key in a short game. If you catch stolen bases, block well, and hit once or twice when it matters at the plate, you can win MVP. I heard that the goal is to aim high. I want to win both the KBO League MVP and Korean Series MVP,” he said.
“When I was younger, Kang Min-ho (Samsung) was my role model. When I started playing baseball, the best catchers were Yang Ji (Doosan) and Kang Min-ho,” Lee said. ”Now, I’m looking up to Park Kyung-wan as a role model. He’s a permanent SSG player, and I’m imagining myself taking over and becoming a permanent SSG player,” he laughed.
Lee, who said that his goal for his debut season is to be included in the opening day roster next season,
He said, “I want to win the title of Korea’s best catcher that fans will think of when they think of a KBO catcher in the future, and I want to become the most Golden Glove-winning player in the league by the time I retire.” He continued, “If I do well from next year, I will be able to greet you in Incheon. I hope you will always support me and watch me closely,” he said to the fans.