He dumped 15 tons of dirt on the ground. After searching for a ticket online, he got one two days earlier. Why do Samsung have to go to Guam first when there is already a well-organized Okinawa camp in Japan? There is a reason.
The Samsung Lions will hold spring camp for the 2025 season in Guam and Okinawa. The team, which will be divided into two flights on Tuesday, will focus on training for about two weeks before returning to Korea on April 4 and boarding a flight to Okinawa on May 5 for the second camp. 안전놀이터
Samsung has been conducting camp only in Okinawa since 2016. Since 2005, it has invested heavily in facilities at Akama Stadium in Onnason, Okinawa, and has thus secured the best facilities among the campsites. There was no reason to go elsewhere.
However, it is different this year. Samsung will visit Guam for the first time in eight years since 2015. It was pushed forward at the request of coach Park Jin-man. He intends to build up his body in a warmer place and return to strengthen his sense of actual play in Okinawa. In fact, he had to suffer from unexpected rain and cold weather during the recent Okinawa camp. In the early days of the camp, it was difficult for the players to properly physicalize, and as a result, the team's coaches and players sought to move to Guam.
In fact, it is not awkward for Samsung to hold spring camps in Guam and Okinawa. The team had been doing this for 11 years from 2005 to 2015. It has many good memories. During the 11 years when Samsung had the first off-season training in Guam, it won the Korean Series (KS) six times (2005-2006, 2011-2014). All of them except 2009 have advanced to the post season. Samsung, which won the runner-up prize in the KS last year, will visit Guam, where it has good memories, to regain momentum.
However, there were many twists and turns before the final decision was made to go to Guam. First of all, Samsung dispatched its staff in December last year to conduct due diligence. The previously used ballpark in the Leopard resort was in bad condition, so we had to look for other places. The resort has decided to use only auxiliary facilities necessary for physical training.
While searching for an alternative stadium, the club invited the Paseo baseball stadium, which is about 15 minutes away by bus. The ground conditions were not good here, too. The team was quoted as saying that up to 15 tons of soil was needed to build the ground. In response, the team dispatched personnel from related companies to Guam to conduct maintenance and preparation for the ground. A bullpen training space has also been established near the resort to provide training sites for pitchers.
Flights were also problematic. It was difficult to obtain flights due to the overlapping Lunar New Year holidays. What's worse, group training is available for each club from January 25, when the period of inactivity designated by the KBO ends, and the fastest flight was on April 22. Considering the violation of the training during the inactive period, the club asked the KBO and the Korea Professional Baseball Organization to leave the country early. Fortunately, the team received an answer that there was no problem. Instead, players who arrived in Guam on May 23 will take a two-day break and begin their training on May 25.
As Samsung's schedule and destination changed, so did the contents of its camp. Last year, Samsung had a lot of practice games with the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) team from the beginning of its Okinawa spring camp. Rather, it had a disappointing seven losses out of seven games and adversely affected players' confidence and physical stamina. This year, Samsung drastically reduced the number of practice games and allocated schedules to enable players to increase their physical stamina.
Meanwhile, Okinawa has three matches between blue and white besides training. The team also plans to have a practice game with the Yomiuri Giants (away), Chunichi Dragons, SSG Landers, KT Wiz, LG Twins, and KIA Tigers (home). After completing all of their schedules in Okinawa, they will return to Korea on March 5.
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