Finally, the first starter against Taiwan, which was hidden, will be revealed...Who will be the next MOON DONG JU
Finally, the first starter against Taiwan, which was hidden, will be revealed...Who will be the next MOON DONG JU
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Ryu Joong-il, the coach of the Korean national baseball team, has yet to announce the first starting pitcher who will take the heavy responsibility to influence the mood of the "2024 Premier 12" tournament. Korea will play its first Group B match against Taiwan in the first round of the tournament on Tuesday. Korea can cruise throughout the tournament only when it secures the first match, and Ryu is attempting to keep his team's full capacity by hiding the first starting pitcher as much as possible as he has determined to win the match against Taiwan. Even when Taiwanese reporters asked Ryu who was the starting pitcher for the match against Taiwan, he said, "I don't know," and did his best to keep it a secret.메이저사이트
Ryu's secret starting pitcher for the match against Taiwan will be revealed at an official press conference at the Howard Plaza Hotel in Taipei, Taiwan on Tuesday. Ryu and his captain Song Sung-moon will attend the press conference, while Taiwanese, Cuban and Dominican Republic coaches and players from Group B will also join the team. The other two teams in Group B, Japan and Australia, will play in Nagoya on Thursday, Japan, and move to Taipei, and will not be able to join the press conference.
Candidates for starting pitcher at the match against Taiwan are Kwak Bin (Doosan Bears) and Ko Young-pyo (kt Wiz). Taiwanese media seem to be predicting Kwak's chances of playing in the upcoming match. Kwak has tied with Won Tae-in (Samsung Lions) for the most wins with 15 wins (nine losses) this year, and pitched 167 ⅔ innings with an ERA of 4.24. He uses sharp curves for fast balls over 150 kilometers per hour as his main weapon.
Although Ko had ups and downs this year, he recorded 6-8 losses, 100 innings and an ERA of 4.95 in 18 games. Sidearm Ko Young-pyo's main weapon is "dancing" change-up. Regarding the possibility of starting the match against Taiwan, Ko said, "I don't know if I will go out or not, but if I do, Taiwanese batters have been weak in side-arm change-ups in the past. I think I have to make the most of my strengths. I think I should give at least a run in a short inning because I like middle pitchers. I feel reassured that I have several pitchers (in the bullpen) who boast great pitching," showing his determination to do my best if given the mission.
Ryu will present his answer at the press conference after contemplating whether to take the right-handed orthodox Kwak Bin or shake Taiwanese batters with Ko Young-pyo's unfamiliar ball.
Korea hopes that the second Moon Dong-ju (Hanwha Eagles) will come out regardless of who will take the lead as the first starter. At the Hangzhou Asian Games held in October last year, Moon made two starts in the match against Taiwan and accomplished the decisive task of giving Korea a gold medal. In the group league match against Taiwan, Moon had to lose 0-4 with only two runs in four innings, but he led the team to a 2-0 complete victory with six scoreless innings in the final.
Korea had 26 wins and 16 losses in 42 matches against Taiwan in international competitions. The team has painful memories of being completely defeated by Taiwan 0-7 in the 2019 Premier 12 Super Round, and won 1-1 at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year and 6-1 at the APBC (Asia Professional Baseball Championship) preliminary match last year. It has been tight with two wins and two losses in four matches since 2019.
Regarding Taiwan's strength, Ryu said, "I like pitchers. I think I am getting closer to Japanese baseball style as I recently recruited Japanese leaders. Batters also have long-range hitting power," stressing that Ryu is a tricky opponent.
Taiwan is also wary of Korea, but seems to have a chance to win. "Korea is a really strong team. However, Japan's defense is relatively more stable. Taiwan will have a chance to win against Korea," Ye Jun-jang, head coach of the Wei Quan Dragons of the Taiwanese professional baseball league, said in an interview with Taiwanese media "TSNA" on Sunday.
Despite Wei Quan's 1-5 defeat, coach Ye Jun-jang said, "Korea is strong, but sometimes it's a matter of style of play. If Korea tries to do better than its opponents, Japan is different. Japanese players have very high knowledge of baseball. Whether Japan is strong or not, the ultimate goal is to win in their own way. Korea, on the other hand, lacks this point. Under these circumstances, Taiwan will have a chance, and compared to Korea, Taiwan's nationality is a little more flexible," hoping to penetrate Korea's loopholes.
Left-hander Lin Yu-min is most likely to be the starting pitcher against Taiwan. Like Moon Dong-ju at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year, Lin made impressions by taking the mound both times at the match against Korea. Lin pitched six scoreless innings in a group match against Korea, but bowed his head as he allowed two runs in five innings in the final. South Korea expects that if Lin takes the mound again, he will not have as much difficulty as last year's pitching in which he fully understood the ball last year.
If Korea ranks among the top two in Group B, it can advance to the Super Round at Tokyo Dome. Korea will play four consecutive games against Taiwan, Cuba, Japan and the Dominican Republic before taking a day off and having its last opening round match with Australia on Wednesday. Lee Dong-il's destination will be changed depending on his performance in the opening round. If he advances to the Super Round, he will go to Japan, and if he is eliminated, he will go to Korea. Korea wants to advance to the Super Round and enter the Tokyo Dome in Japan without fail. Premier 12 games including Korea will be available on SPOTV PRIME.