The 2025 Next-Level Training Camp, organized by the KBO and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Sports Promotion Organization, is set to undergo a transformation. The Next-Level Training Camp, which began in 2022 with the goal of revitalizing the development of elite youth players, will be a more organized and structured project based on the experience gained in the field over the past three years.
Previously, youth player development focused on quantitative growth to expand the draft pool by actively supporting the creation of K-12 baseball clubs. However, considering factors that may affect the competitiveness of the KBO League in the future, such as a decline in the number of students due to a decline in the number of births, we decided to focus on improving the quality of players who can enter the league.
The project will move away from the existing one-time camps to strengthen continuity. We will organize the Next-Level Training Camp curriculum by age, focusing on middle school juniors and high school freshmen, who are at the peak of skill acquisition.
We invite outstanding players from each region to the camp to observe and coach the players, and then gather players who stand out at the regional camps for more in-depth training at the national camp.
In addition, we continuously convene players to measure their athletic performance using biomechanics equipment and analyze the results to provide technical feedback. By intensively observing and nurturing potential players, the system will help improve the quality of players who will play in the KBO League in the future, and further enhance the national team's competitiveness.
The enhanced 2025 Next-Level Training Camp will kick off with the first “2025 KBO Next-Level Training Camp” on Monday (20th) at the Gijang-gun (Gunsan Jung Jong-bok) Gijang KBO Baseball Center in Busan. The first camp will be held for six days and seven nights until Sunday, June 26, for 40 outstanding Little League players (preliminary middle school 1). The second camp will be held from Friday, Jan. 31 to Friday, Feb. 14 for 14 days and 15 nights for 40 outstanding middle school players.
The coaching staff of the Next-Level Training Camp is also composed of the best coaches to help the players grow.
Head coach Ryu Ji-hyun will oversee the players, while hitting coach Heo Mun-ho, pitching coaches Choi Won-ho, Cha Myung-joo, and Ma Jung-gil, battery coaches Choi Ki-moon and Kang In-hwon, and defense coaches Chae Jong-guk and Jung Jin-ho will guide the players with their years of experience in the KBO League.
In addition to on-field skills training and physical training led by professional trainers, the program will also provide injury prevention education to take care of the players' bodies, as well as cheating prevention education to cultivate the basic skills that baseball players should have as members of society. Through the Youth Self-Conditioning Program, Dong Aotsuka will enhance the players' understanding of sports science and provide them with water and Pocaris weights for hydration.
[News Source: KBO]