Why does a 20-save pitcher return to the starting lineup

Nov 14, 2024

SSG right-hander Moon Seung-won. Sports Chosun DB

[Kagoshima (Japan) = Reporter Na Yuri from Sports Chosun]"Let's get ready to start again."

SSG Landers coach Lee Sung-yong changed his plans for next season. The key on the mound is Moon Seung-won's starting conversion.

Moon Seung-won was originally a starting resource. In the 2019 season, he won 11 games (seven losses), the most in a single season. Moon Seung-won, who returned in the second half of the 2022 season after elbow surgery, started as an axis of the 2023 season's starting rotation, but switched to the bullpen due to the team's urgent backdoor. He was once in charge of finishing the team. Then, he returned to the starting lineup when there was a hole in the starting lineup.

Immediately after taking office, coach Lee Soo-yong had a heated debate with pitching coach Bae Young-soo and other coaching staff about Moon Seung-won's position. The conclusion then was the bullpen. The domestic starters include Kim Kwang-hyun and Oh Won-seok, so Moon Seung-won meant to go to the bullpen and make the weak back door solid. Is Moon Seung-won also preparing as a bullpen this season?All.

Moon Seung-won.Sports Chosun DB

The performance was not bad either. This season, Moon Seung-won pitched in 62 games and recorded 6 wins, 1 loss, 6 holds, and 20 saves. In the first half, he fixed his position as a closing pitcher to secure eight consecutive saves, and after Cho Byung-hyun took the finishing position in the second half, he served as a waist along with Noh Kyung-eun as a member of the must-win group.

However, Moon Seung-won will prepare as a starting pitcher again next season. Manager Lee Sung-yong and pitcher coach Kyung Heon-ho, who newly joined SSG, agreed.

Manager Lee Sung-yong met with Moon Seung-won after the season and talked in person, and expressed his intention to prepare for next season as a starting pitcher. The player accepted it, too. Pitcher coach Kyung Heon-ho also thought about pitchers when he came to SSG, and Moon Seung-won wanted to use it as a starter. When I told the director, he said, "The director thought the same as me."

First of all, it is expected that about four foreign pitchers, including two foreign pitchers, Kim Kwang-hyun and Moon Seung-won, will enter the camp with a starting rotation. Song Young-jin and Chung Dong-yoon will compete for the remaining seat. Kim Min-eun, who was acquired through a one-on-one trade with Oh Won-seok, is expected to take charge of a key bullpen with Noh Kyung-eun and Cho Byung-hyun.

youll@sportschosun.com