Goal of ticket to the finals’ coach Yang Sang-moon
The women’s baseball team, led by head coach Yang Sang-moon, will depart for Thunder Bay, Canada on the 6th (Korean time) to participate in the group stage of the Women’s Baseball World Cup. The national team qualified for the World Cup by winning a bronze medal at the Asian Cup held in Hong Kong last June, and will participate in Group A of the Women’s Baseball World Cup group stage, which will be held in Thunder Bay from August 9th. Group A includes South Korea, USA, Canada, Hong Kong, Australia and Mexico. The top two teams out of the six countries can advance to the finals, and if they are included in the top 2 in the wild card, including Group B, they can aim to advance to the finals.
Starting with the match against Hong Kong on the 9th, the national team will meet the United States, 스포츠토토 Australia, Canada and Mexico in order. The world ranking of Korean women’s baseball is 10th. Among the countries in Group A, Canada is ranked the highest at 3rd, followed by the United States at 4th and Australia at 8th. Hong Kong (11th) and Mexico (12th) are only slightly different from Korea.
Head coach Yang Sang-moon, who has been leading the national team since December of last year, is currently instructing players with professional coaches such as Jeong Geun-woo (hitting/defense), Lee Dong-hyeon/Yoo Won-sang (pitcher), and Heo Il-sang (catcher). In an interview with Sports Chosun before departure, head coach Yang Sang-moon said, “My goal is to advance to the finals next year, but it’s not easy in reality. I have to judge internally which team to go all-in against.” ?I want to give you a surprise. Our women’s baseball is a complete periphery. It has always been an easy opponent for players from other countries. However, I think the last goal should be to change these perceptions. 3 wins is the goal, but that is not possible. Even so, Korean women’s baseball has changed and become stronger.
Hong Kong and Mexico are must-win opponents, and at least one win against the United States, Australia, and Canada is needed to win. What is the team’s strategy? Head coach Yang Sang-moon emphasized, “I think Hong Kong and Mexico will be a match if our ‘ace’ goes out. However, the other three teams are far ahead in terms of power. It is extremely difficult to win by force, so we have to play in detail.” did.
Most of the national team players have a separate job and can only train on weekends when they are not working. This is because there is no business team in women’s baseball. In the case of Japan, which ranks first in the world, the women’s business league is also well established, and the infrastructure is by far the best in the world. The United States, Australia, and Canada, where people are exposed to various sports from a young age, have natural environments. Director Yang Sang-moon expressed regret, saying, “Those countries have a well-equipped environment, so there is bound to be a difference from the basics. They don’t train only twice a week like we do.”
However, the strong teamwork created in a harsh environment is the best strength of the Korean national team. Manager Yang Sang-moon laughed, “The players gained a lot of confidence in the Asian Cup. Young players even thought they could beat Japan, but I realized that the wall is still high.” I can’t train, but my baseball continues to improve. It’s worthwhile to teach. The players have never learned professionally from these coaches, so they really like it and follow it. A family-like atmosphere,” he said, expressing his affection.
The national team changed 5 players after the Asian Cup ended. Players with good hitting were added. This is a strategy to score more points in this competition. As the women’s baseball international tournament is a fight to ‘reduce mistakes’, there are many points to catch the opponent off guard. Coach Yang also said, “(Other teams) are not as bad as Japan. Each has good pitchers, but it’s not clear what level the rest of the players are. Considering the improvements in our players, it’s worth trying.” said.
Korean women’s baseball is just taking its first steps. It is a long way to go, but at the same time it is a process of making great pioneering. It is expected that the pie of women’s baseball will be much bigger if the National Sports Festival is adopted as an official event and an unemployment team is established. Director Yang Sang-moon is also moving with us every moment.
“In the meantime, everyone was not interested in what women’s baseball was doing, but now Sports Chosun is also covering it. I want to show the impression that Korean women’s baseball is getting stronger.”