Lotte Giants Send Key Starters, Including Go Seung-min and Jeon Min-jae, to US for Training

The professional baseball team Lotte Giants, which previously reaped rewards by dispatching prospects to American baseball academies, is now sending key starting players to the United States.

The Lotte club announced that it will send eight players to Driveline Baseball and Tread Athletics in the United States for a three-week period from October 18 to November 8.

The most noticeable change is the heavier profile of the participating roster.

While previous dispatches had a strong "test" character focused on players returning from military service or prospects, this upcoming trip features core starting center-line players, including second baseman Go Seung-min and shortstop Jeon Min-jae, alongside a large group of key prospects such as Jung Dae-seon and Lee Seo-jun boarding the flight to Driveline.

Driveline is a facility that quantifies hitting mechanics with data to suggest customized improvement directions.

At Tread Athletics, which comprehensively manages physical abilities and pitching mechanics, four pitchers will participate, including left-handed hard-throwing prospect Hong Min-gi, alongside Lee Jun-seo, Kim Han-gyul, and Kim Tae-gyun.


The background behind Lotte sending even starting-caliber players to the US immediately after the end of the season lies in the proven success they experienced from previous dispatches.

Lotte sent Cho Se-jin, Kim Dong-hyun, and others to Driveline last August, laying the groundwork for them to establish themselves in the first team. This January, Park Jin and Lee Jin-ha achieved remarkable skill improvements after passing through Tread Athletics.

Jeon Min-jae, who joined the trip to the US, expressed his determination, saying, "Last year, with the club's support, I systematically received defensive training at the Chiba Lotte Marines finishing camp, and this year I will grow another step further in hitting through Driveline."

Cho Se-jin, who went through Driveline last year, also lent support by saying, "It was a time to comprehensively review my batting after being discharged from the military, and based on this season's experience, I will show an even better appearance next year."

Since 2024, Lotte has been expanding exchanges with overseas clubs and sports science facilities to strengthen internal development.

This time as well, coaching staff and front-office employees will accompany the players with the plan of fully embedding advanced biomechanical systems and data analysis capabilities into the team's development process.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.