The Kia Tigers, who are leading the league, are struggling on the mound. They lost Yoon Young-cheol (20) to a sudden injury, and their bullpen is shaky. The strength of the mound is absolutely crucial for the Tigers to win the title in the remaining 55 games. No matter how strong the batting lineup is, the mound must hold up to win the championship.
Kia believes it can win the title if it wins half of its 55 games, or about 28 wins. With 28 wins, that’s 80 wins. Last year, the LG Twins won 86 games (56 W, 2 L, 2 T) and won the title by 6.5 games. This year, with a more evenly matched lineup, it’s not as easy to win the division, so the number of wins is expected to be lower than last year.
However, Kia’s mound situation is an emergency. Starting pitcher Yoon Young-cheol has been sidelined with a stress fracture in his spine. He will have to undergo another examination in three weeks to determine when he will return. It’s likely to be at least six weeks. He averaged five innings per start. The starter who won seven of 16 games is out. He’s not even a viable replacement.
Manager Lee Bum-ho said he plans to use Kim Gun-guk.
It’s best if he can go five innings, but if he’s pulled early, he’ll have to use a bullpen day. Even Hwang Dong-ha, who has been solid in place of Lee Yi-ri, who had elbow surgery that ended his season early, has yet to average more than five innings. 카지노사이트 That leaves the bullpen to pick up the slack.
To compensate for the weakness of the fourth and fifth starters, the 123 pitchers, including James Nail, Yang Hyeon-jong, and Cam Aldred, will have to win more games. The three pitchers have become more relied upon, but Nail and Yang’s innings have been slipping lately. There are games where they don’t last six innings. They need to improve their innings to ease the pressure on the bullpen.
Closer Jung Hae-young will be back next week, but Pil Seung-jo’s strength has dropped significantly. Kia’s Pil Seung-jo showed off his strong stuff early in the season and was the reason for their early lead. The starting pitchers didn’t get many innings. As they won more games, they were called upon more frequently, which strained the bullpen and led to a drop in performance in the second half. Jang Hyun-sik is a prime example.
He has pitched in 49 games, nearly half of the team’s 89 games, and has been up and down.
“Being in first place, there are a lot of games to win, so the bullpen has to pitch often. I’m grateful that they’re not tired yet,” Lee said, thanking the bullpen for their hard work. “We talked a lot with the 123 starters (about digesting innings). It’s inevitable that we’re going to have one-sided games now. It’s about where you are at the end. With the pitchers we have, even if we have a bad game, we have to play the season. We’re going to get through this,” he said.
He meant to say that he understood if the weaker starters came out and got blown out and lost by a lot of runs. At the same time, it was a statement of intent to be selective and focused in games with 123 starters. Of course, they have the support of the league’s best bats. If the 123 starters are able to provide big innings, the team’s chances of winning increase. “It’s a tough time,” Lee said. I want the batsmen to step up,” Lee ordered.