There was hope in 'Shock 29 Runs'? The left-handed specialist who came back...KIA bullpen, a new hope?
Jul 14, 2024
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KIA left-hander bullpen Lee Joon-young (32) made a scoreless appearance in the first team for the first time in a long time. Lee Joon-young took the mound in the top of the sixth inning when his team was trailing 4-7 against SSG Landers at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 13th and recorded one hit and no run in one inning.
He threw just five pitches against three batters. Lee Joon-young, who grounded out leadoff hitter Ha Jae-hoon in two pitches, became a hit when the second slider distributed to Park Sung-han hit Kim Sun-bin. However, he was able to block the on-base by throwing out Kim Sun-bin, who played to second base, with Choi Won-joon's throw. After that, Park Ji-hwan was sprayed with a 142km fastball to induce a grounder to the third base, easily finishing the inning.
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Lee Joon-young's last pitch for the first team was on the 13th of last month. At that time, he took the mound as the second pitcher after James Nail against Incheon SSG, but gave up one hit and three walks while catching two outcounts. Since then, Lee Joon-young has completed the first half of the season after going through a 10-day injured list. Coincidentally, the opponent for the return match was also SSG.
Lee Joon-young got off to a good start with an ERA of 1.17 in 14 games and seven ⅔ through April. He took the mound in relief for two consecutive days against Lotte in Busan on May 22-23, but lost points and his ERA increased significantly, and although he was shaken in the match against SSG before the expiration of the first team, he did his part faithfully in most games.
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After six consecutive wins, 29 consecutive losses were hurt. However, Lee Joon-young's strong pitching, which proved his reputation as a "left-handed specialist" for the first time in a long time, deserved hope for the exhausted KIA bullpen.
ppark@sportschosun.com
