“It’s not even a training league…”

Aside from Felix Peña, Ricardo Sanchez, and Moon Dong-joo, Hanwha is a bit shaky at the back of the lineup. In fact, Moon Dong-joo is doing very well for a rookie, so it’s not surprising if he falters at times. Since taking over, Choi Won-ho has made several adjustments to the fourth and fifth lineup.

Han Seung-hyuk and Jang Min-jae have been dropped in favor of Lee Tae-yang and rookie Kim Seo-hyun. Lee Tae-yang made his first start in a year on June 16 against the Changwon NC with five innings of four-hit ball, one strikeout and one run. It had been six years and two months since his last start for Hanwha, on June 18, 2017, against KT in Daejeon.

Lee is no stranger to moving back and forth between the starting rotation and the bullpen. Even this season, he pitched a near-perfect five innings in the bullpen before being moved to the starting rotation. He credits his experience at SSG with broadening his perspective on baseball. He was able to utilize a variety of pitches to get batters to hit and eat up innings.

Before the Changwon NC game on the 17th, Choi Won-ho laughed and said, “It’s not an educational league. We can’t keep developing starting pitchers here,” he said. He decided to rely on Lee’s experience and stability. Choi said, “There is uncertainty about the four or five starters, so I took out the sure card of Lee Tae-yang.” Choi acknowledged Lee’s words, “If you have a player like me, the manager and coach will be comfortable.”

Now, Hanwha’s starting lineup is more or less stable in the first through fourth spots. The final concern is the fifth spot. Not just for this season, but also for the future, the fifth spot needs to be addressed. It would be best if Kim Seo-hyun stays in the first team, but we’ll see.메이저사이트

Hanwha’s homegrown development project is not over. Kim Seo-hyun, the fifth starter, will finally make his debut as a starting pitcher on the 17th against Changwon NC. Choi acknowledged that it might take longer to develop him into a starter than Moon Dong-joo. “Even if it doesn’t work right away, we have to keep working on him and challenge him,” Choi said.