The Samsung Lions have decided to revitalize their bullpen.
“I think we need to make some changes in the bullpen,” said Samsung manager Park Jin-man before the Kia Tigers game at KIA Champions Field in Gwangju on Tuesday. “I talked to the pitching coach, but there are 30 more games left in the season, and I think we need to be more aggressive and move at a faster tempo from now on,” he said.
“Currently, we have Choi Ji-kwang and Kim Jae-yoon Oh Seung-hwan, but there may be changes depending on the situation. Rather than pitching one inning at a time, we will try to be flexible according to the game situation so that we can move quickly, even if we have to give two innings to a pitcher who is in good shape.”
Oh Seung-hwan, who failed to protect a one-run lead against KIA in Gwangju on Sept. 9, is no exception.
Park Jin-man said, “Oh Seung-hwan doesn’t always wait until the end. Depending on the situation, he may come out a little earlier, and we will make the right decision.”
It’s a frustrating reality of not having a pitcher you can trust with the final lead. But even if they don’t use Oh as the closer, they don’t have an immediate replacement.
Kim Jae-yoon, a former KT closer, hasn’t been able to fully overcome the pressure of hitting long balls at hitter-friendly Lions Park. He has allowed 11 home runs this season.
Another veteran closer, Lim Chang-min, isn’t a reliever who can reliably dominate opposing hitters.
Choi Ji-kwang has done a good job from the back, but he doesn’t have much experience as a closer. Pitchers who have been good in the middle of the rotation face a lot of pressure when they move up to the closer’s role. 메이저사이트 It is not an easy task to overcome suddenly in the middle of the season.
When it becomes common knowledge around the league that a team doesn”t have a pitcher who can reliably protect a one- or two-run lead, that team becomes a target and becomes more tired. This is because the chasing team will not give up until the end and will try to pull off a last-minute upset by using a must-win pitcher.
The Gwangju KIA game on the 9th is a typical case. Samsung cut the deficit to 8-6 with a double steal in the top of the eighth inning, but Kia showed a strong will to win the game by bringing in bullpen ace Jang Hyun-sik with the bases loaded and two outs, which was eventually realized in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Manager Park Jin-man’s “keep the healthy players in the field” is a tactic that reflects the frustrating reality of not having a clear-cut solution. The only way out is for veteran and young bullpen pitchers to step up in their respective positions.