Unreasonable bullpen turn, why KT is on the brink
Repeated closing pitcher "blocking back" eventually became self-sufficient. KT Wiz is on the brink.
KT lost 4-15 in Game 4 of the Korean Series (KS, four wins out of seven) at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, its home stadium, on the 11th. After winning the first game, he lost three consecutive games and was on the verge of losing the championship.
It was in the top of the fifth inning that Seung-ki transferred to LG in Game 4. KT manager Lee Kang-chul put in Kim Jae-yoon (33) immediately after starting pitcher Um Sang-baek allowed leadoff batter Moon Sung-joo to walk with his team losing 0-2. Kim Jae-yoon is the closing pitcher of KT, which recorded 32 saves in the regular season.
Director Lee Kang-chul's choice ended in failure. Kim Jae-yoon gave up a sacrifice bunt to his follow-up Shin Min-jae and was even hit by Hong Chang-ki. Park Hae-min and Kim Hyun-soo, who faced each other, then finished the inning with a hit, but were eventually substituted after being hit by a two-run home run to the left by Moon Bo-kyung in the top of the sixth inning with one out and one on the first base. Since then, KT has collapsed with four bullpen pitchers who took the mound giving up 10 points.
When asked why he deployed Kim Jae-yoon early after the game, Lee Kang-chul said, "I couldn't just give up the game (Game 4). "I also wanted Kim Jae-yoon to regain his confidence in a comfortable situation," he said.
Kim Jae-yoon failed to complete his duties in Game 3 held the previous day (10th) and became a losing pitcher. KT took the mound in the top of the ninth inning with a 7-5 lead, but after causing a crisis of two outs and runners on first and second bases, Oh Ji-hwan allowed a three-run home run.
Manager Lee Kang-chul saw defense as the first game-winner in the top of the fifth inning of Game 4 and made a strong move to put in a closing pitcher. At the same time, I hoped that Kim Jae-yoon would take it relatively comfortably and pitch rather than a close situation in the 8th and 9th innings. He saw that Kim Jae-yoon should show his skills in the rest of the series.
It is difficult for a pitcher who gave an excuse for losing Game 3 to recover his mental health in a day. In addition, the opposing hitters were confident against Kim Jae-yoon. Director Lee Kang-chul looked too far, and I think he wanted too much.
Director Lee Kang-chul's use of Kim Jae-yoon has raised questions throughout KS. In the first game, he deployed setup man Park Young-hyun instead of Kim Jae-yoon in defense in the bottom of the ninth inning with a 3-2 lead. Park Young-hyun secured the lead by completing her mission. After the game, manager Lee Kang-chul said, "We prepared for the overtime game, and Park Young-hyun put it in (at the end of the ninth inning) because he had already warmed up in the bullpen." From Kim Jae-yoon's point of view, he gave up his duties to his juniors.
Kim Jae-yoon failed to serve as a closing pitcher in Game 2. Park Young-hyun took the mound and faced two batters (Moon Sung-joo and Shin Min-jae) at a time when KT lost the lead by one point (4-5 score) after Park Dong-won hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning.
They don't usually put in a closing pitcher when they're losing. Kim Jae-yoon also took the mound in Game 5 of the playoffs on the 5th. It is not that the sense of the game has deteriorated.
Kim Jae-yoon, who was one of the bullpen pitchers, not the closer of Game 1 and 2 of KS, finally started a save situation in Game 3 of KS. In Game 4, he was deployed in the fifth inning, when he had never played in the regular season.
It is a short-term bullpen operation that sometimes plays the entire series with two or three reliable pitchers. KT's bullpen operation in KS, which used closing pitchers without the public, seems to be "out of line" rather than "use of constraints."