The Kiwoom Heroes selected Busan High School’s Ha Hyeonseung with the overall first pick in the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft on the 21st.
Alongside Ha Hyeonseung, players with varied backgrounds—including high school and college players and former Major Leaguer Choi Ji-man—were selected by professional clubs.
This draft was the day when prospect evaluations turned into actual opportunities to join professional teams.
3-Line Summary
1. Kiwoom selected Ha Hyeonseung with the overall first pick.
2. 110 players were selected over 11 rounds.
3. Selection is only the beginning of a professional career.
Ha Hyeonseung, Who Led Korea to the U-18 Title, Becomes Kiwoom’s First Choice
At the draft held at Lotte Hotel World in Songpa-gu, Seoul, Kiwoom called Ha Hyeonseung, who plays both pitcher and hitter, first. Earlier this month, Ha Hyeonseung helped Korea win its first U-18 Asian Baseball Championship in 8 years.
According to a Seoul Shinmun report, he pitched 15⅔ innings over 3 games in the tournament, recording 25 strikeouts, 4 hits allowed, and no runs allowed. In the final against Japan, he threw a complete-game shutout, allowing 1 hit and recording 8 strikeouts over 7 innings. His performance in the international tournament led directly to his selection as the overall 1st pick in the professional draft.
After being selected, Ha Hyeonseung said that as a pitcher, he wanted to face KIA Tigers player Kim Do-yeong, and as a hitter, Doosan Bears player Kwak Bin. These are goals expressed by the player and do not mean that his actual 1st-team debut timing or role has been determined.
The 1st Round’s Selections Leaned Toward Pitchers
Doosan selected Seoul High School infielder Kim Ji-woo with the overall 2nd pick, while KIA selected Gyeongnam High School infielder Lee Ho-min with the 3rd pick. The Lotte Giants then selected Seoul Design High School pitcher Park Geun-seo, and kt wiz selected Yushin High School pitcher Lee Seung-won.
Of the 10 players selected in the 1st round, 6 were pitchers, including Park Geun-seo, Lee Seung-won, Kim Min-hun, Lee Yun-seong, Min Ju-hong, and Yoon Ye-seong. SSG Landers selected Masan High School left-hander Lee Yun-seong with the overall 8th pick. Immediately after being selected, Lee Yun-seong said he would become the best left-handed pitcher in Korean baseball. This, too, was the player’s resolve, not an assessment guaranteeing future performance.
Pitchers were also the most frequently selected position across the draft as a whole. Seoul Shinmun reported that among the 110 players selected, there were 62 pitchers, 28 infielders, 11 catchers, and 9 outfielders. These figures show which positions the clubs prioritized in this selection process.
Choi Ji-man Was Selected by kt with the Overall 15th Pick
Another focus of this draft was Choi Ji-man’s destination. He made his Major League debut in 2016 and played for 6 teams over 8 seasons through 2023, finishing with a career batting average of 0.234, 67 home runs, and 238 RBIs.
Choi Ji-man entered the draft after playing for the Ulsan Whales, and kt selected him with the overall 15th pick in the 2nd round. It drew attention because it was a case of a player with prior overseas professional experience being selected in a rookie draft centered on players expected to graduate from high school.
However, selection is a stage preceding the signing. Although the names of 110 players were called, when and how each player establishes himself in the 1st team will be determined through future training and competition. The significance of this draft lies not in confirmed results, but in the choices each club made regarding its future roster strength.
References
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