RSS Feed

Tech Support

The starting lineup is five days off, and the winning group is two days off

Game 4 of the Korean Series at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 11th was a nightmare for KT Wiz. The score difference of 4-15 and more than 11 points was shocking, but four bullpen players, who were put in with early closer Kim Jae-yoon, collapsed as they gave as many as 12 runs. He even suffered a shock defeat as he revealed all of the bullpen's bottom.

Before the game, KT manager Lee Kang-chul lamented, "There is no bullpen pitcher to raise." At first, it seemed like a big deal. Pil Seung-jo Son Dong-hyun and Park Young-hyun are tired, and Lee Sang-dong, who pitched a surprise pitch in Game 3 (two scoreless innings), cannot play in Game 4 due to many pitches, but KT had four pitchers who did not play in a single game in this series. It was Bae Je-seong and Kim Min, Joo Kwon and Kim Young-hyun.

However, there was a reason why coach Lee Kang-chul said this. The pitchers were not in 100% condition.

This was also revealed in the pitching of Game 4. Kim Young-hyun allowed two hits, one walk, and one run in one inning, Kim Min allowed two hits and two runs without an out count, and Joo Kwon was sluggish with four hits and four runs in ⅔ innings, while Bae Je-sung, who was strong against LG, was sluggish with three hits and four outs and three runs in two innings. As well as his condition, his pitching sense seemed to have fallen significantly.

Finally, he used up all the bullpen he had. But the bottom line was revealed. Although it was only one game, it was a game in which the limitations of KT's bullpen were revealed. Not only the must-win group but also the chasing group gave coach Lee Kang-chul a hard time with his difficult pitching. As even the closer Kim Jae-yoon was sluggish, the scope of the operation became narrower.

In the end, it is the starting lineup that is to be trusted. KT was able to win three consecutive games after two losses in the playoffs and win Game 1 of the Korean Series thanks to the starters playing five to six innings and Son Dong-hyun and Park Young-hyun's Pil Seung-jo's solid defense of one to two innings each. It is an ideal trend to go like this in the remaining 5th to 7th games. Of course, for an ideal scenario, the explosion of the batting line must also be supported.

However, the variable is the physical strength of the starting lineup and the winning team. Both ball speed and ball power are showing an over pace in this fall's baseball. Among them, the starters repeated their appearance after three or four days off, and Pil Seung-jo made six to seven consecutive games. The only hope for Game 4 is that Ko Young-pyo, William Cuevas, and Wes Benjamin can take the mound after five days of rest due to the starting lineup of Eom Sang-baek, and Son Dong-hyun and Park Young-hyun took a game off.

Will KT be able to create a great game-changing magic in games 5 to 7 with pitchers who have saved their physical strength. There have been as many as 16 out of 17 cases in which they won the Korean Series after 3 wins and 1 loss. There is a 94.1% chance of winning. On the contrary, the only team that won three consecutive games after one win and three losses was the Samsung Lions in 2013. KT is going for a 5.9% chance.