Hanwha Eagles Catcher, Number 42
185 cm | 82 kg
@sang_un97
Inside the Mind of a Catcher: Park Sang-en’s Story with the Hanwha Eagles
What interests you about baseball? Is there any other reason why you're a catcher?
I've been told many times that I'm talented at baseball in my neighborhood.
When I got older, I told my parents and started. At that time, my father was playing baseball as a member of society, so he gladly supported me. At first, I wanted to be a pitcher, but I couldn't. The high school coach was in charge of the catchers. But it was fun to be a catcher.
I think the director gave me the right opinion. Because of him, I am now a catcher.
What do you think is the charm of baseball as a professional player?
The more I play baseball, the more difficult it is. But I like the sense of satisfaction after I accomplish something difficult. The more you do it, the more competitive you get. It's not fun if it's too easy.
While playing baseball, I was able to do things that I thought were difficult at first. I got used to it after practicing every day. So I realized that I could do anything.
I'm learning life thanks to baseball.
Please tell us what you've gained from the game and what you're disappointed about.
When I first joined the program, I wasn't confident because my nomination ranking was low. But since I've been doing it consistently, I've been able to play in the first division.
That's when I gained confidence and I thought I could do it. What's unfortunate is that usually, you have more capability than you think. I usually thought of bad results in advance and worried about what if I didn't do well. It's much better now, but I still have a lot of worries.
It's not that I'm not nervous, but I think a lot less about trivial things.
I think you gained a lot of experience while playing baseball. Is there any episode that you remember?
In my second year of high school, I was the main catcher. At that time, other teams considered our school the weakest. But we did very well that year. I thought we could beat any team.
In fact, we advanced to the semifinals or higher in all competitions that year and finished second once. Since then, I think mental strength is the most significant thing in baseball.
When have you ever felt limited mentally and physically in your career?
I felt physical limitations when I was a rookie. I leave at 7:30 for training every morning. We had batting in the morning and defensive training in the afternoon. I ate dinner and practiced until 11 pm, even if training ended at 6 pm.
I just graduated from high school, so it was difficult to keep up with training. I've been practicing batting all day, and my hands are worn out after a day. The same training was repeated every day. But I got used to it more I kept doing it.
My skills improved a lot at that time. Actually, I wasn't very interested in high school, but I thought I could do it.
What was good or bad about wearing WaveWear?
I liked it because it didn't smell even if I sweated a lot. Unlike other clothes that smell even after a few washings, WaveWear appears to be as new as ever.
Above all, I liked the L20 leggings. Silicone is on the knees and thighs, and it feels really comfortable. I still use it for training and games.
Tell us about your future goals.
I am paying attention to defense, such as blocking. Above all, I practice by trying to catch the glow of the game well. It's helpful to practice batting. I have a lot of strength, but I hit a lot of ground balls. So I've been practicing a lot in order to hit the ball in the air more.
I want to train steadily and become the team's main catcher. You never know when the opportunity will come. I'm training hard for that time.