Kim Kang-min (41, Hanwha Eagles) was shocked to be stripped of his 'one-club man' label. While he respects SSG Landers' choice, he has learned a hard lesson.

The pros are a jungle. The romance of the franchise is gone. Even before Kim Kang-min was drafted by Hanwha in the second round, the frequency of franchise stars moving on has increased. Players value money, clubs value the future over the past, and future performance over current performance. In this regard, SSG's exclusion of Kim Kang-min from the 35-man roster makes sense.

The difference is that Kim didn't choose to be a one-club man, the club chose him. And it's clear that this fact still makes fans of the franchise uncomfortable. If Kim Kang-min had gone to Hanwha as a free agent, SSG wouldn't have been criticized so much by fans.

Franchise stars leaving in search of money, happiness, and fame in the free agency market is not as criticized as it used to be. Of course, in this case, the team that loses the franchise star will still get some criticism from fans. However, in this case, they can use the excuse of the player's "free will".

However, when it comes to parting ways with a franchise star due to a team's choice, such as in the second round of the draft, it's hard to make an excuse. If SSG wanted to remove Kim from the 35-man roster, they should have made a definite decision about his future before the second round of the draft. Moreover, there was plenty of time to discuss it after the semi-playoffs in late October.

SSG sent Kim to Hanwha, so they should have at least one more future powerhouse. But apart from that, a valuable lesson was learned. The romance of the franchise is gone, but that doesn't mean the fantasy needs to be intentionally shattered. 카지노사이트777

It's natural for fans to treat professional sports with an emphasis on ideals and sentimentality rather than reality; they simply like the one-dimensional baseball of franchise stars. Fans don't need to empathize with a team's salary cap struggles, pressures, or rebuilding status; it's nice if they do, but it's not something that should be forced on them. Fans have real life and daily struggles, too. Many of them come to baseball to forget about them.

In other words, teams don't have the right to tell fans to face reality because the romance of the franchise is broken. SSG should humbly accept the fans' anger at missing out on Kim Kang-min. And part ways with the remaining franchise stars and superstars. No player stays active forever, and even franchise stars have to say goodbye to their fans at some point.

Choi is contracted through 2024 and Kim Kwang-hyun through 2025. Regardless, there's no telling when they'll retire. SSG has the task of figuring out the best way to end their careers and let them go out with a bang. The same goes for Choo Shin-soo, who is likely to retire before them. Franchise stars and superstars of this caliber have every right to decide where they want to live. The last remaining romance in professional sports for fans needs to be respected.