Choi Won-tae, “our No. 1 starter these days,” is definitely getting treatment as the ace. Sunday’s game was canceled due to rain, but Choi’s pitching schedule for Tuesday remains unchanged.
With the Children’s Day games cancelled due to rain on Saturday, LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said he would change the rotation order this week. Choi Won-tae will play on Sunday as scheduled. Kelly, who gave up more than six points in both recent games, received additional rest and was pushed back to Sunday. This signifies that Choi has become the axis of rotation.먹튀검증
Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said, “Kelly needs one more day off. He will play on Wednesday (August 8).” Choi is in good condition right now, so he doesn’t think it would be a good idea to break the rhythm. If he goes to the rotation for five days and puts Kelly behind him, the rest of the starting pitchers can take another day off. I think it would be good to change the rotation once by allowing the rest to take six days off in order.”
Choi Won-tae led his team to victory by recording quality starts in all three recent games, and he has won three consecutive individual games. After winning the game against SSG Landers on the 19th of last month with two hits and one run in six innings, he has continued his winning streak by allowing two hits and one run in six innings against the Samsung Lions on the 25th and four hits and one run in seven innings against the NC Dinos on the 1st of this month.
“I don’t think there will be any reason to play (the rotation) because the team continues to win. The rest of the players don’t have good luck in winning. I thought it would be better to take this opportunity to change the order in general. The rotation is not going well,” Yeom Kyung-yeop said.
It also means that LG is having a hard time maintaining its starting rotation. The biggest concern is that foreign pitchers, who should be one-two punches, are struggling.
Kelly’s pitching was canceled on Saturday, and he will take the mound on Tuesday instead of Tuesday’s game. Longtime foreign pitcher Kelly, who represents LG, has slowed down in recent two games. In the first five games since the season opened, he made four quality starts including seven innings pitched on two occasions, and in the next two games, he allowed 13 runs (12 earned runs) on 18 hits including four homers during nine ⅔ innings. It is the first time that Kelly has earned more than five earned runs in two consecutive games since joining the LG Twins.
Kelly has a strong impression of being a “slostater,” which leaves room to wait and see. Detrick Nence, who had been appointed as an ace pitcher for the opening game, ended up with one win and 11 losses in the Japanese pro baseball last year, which seems to continue in the KBO league.
He recorded 3-1 loss in eight games including the opening game, but his earned run average (ERA) is 5.14. His batting average is 0.295, which is close to .300, and his WHIP (the number of on-base hits per inning) is 1.48. He had 51 hits in 42 innings with only 11 walks. In the last three games, he had 23 hits in 14 innings. As such, he is recognized as a “good ball to hit” by opposing hitters.
LG’s domestic starting lineup is gradually finding pace. Lim Chan-kyu, who has yet to win, showed signs of rebounding from his previous game. He gave up just three hits and one walk during five innings against NC Dinosaurs on Tuesday, and struck out a whopping nine. He endured without allowing any run, but failed to secure a win as he allowed a tie in the bullpen. Sohn Ju-young, the fifth starter, had a bad start by allowing two runs in the first inning at a game against the Doosan Bears on Sunday, but managed to achieve a quality start by allowing three runs in six innings.
Right now, we need to rely on these five players. The team is not ready to replace players yet. Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop views Kim Yoon-sik, Lee Ji-gang and Lee Jong-joon as backup players. Kim returned to the Futures team after allowing only four runs in three innings at the match against the KIA Tigers on April 26, his first appearance in the main league this year. Only when he recovers his condition at the Futures League game will he have a chance to return to the main league players. Lee has not played since the first team’s cancellation due to shoulder problems.