Will the Lee Eui-ri Challenge continue in May?
Eventually, a new word was born: 'Lee Eui-ri Challenge'. It refers to the process of overcoming the crisis without conceding a run through a strikeout show after KIA’s next-generation ace Eui-ri Lee (21) faced a crisis by walking excessively due to a sudden search for the ball. Lee Eui-ri's command and command definitely have an extreme side.
This season, his WHIP is 1.76, and his ERA is 2.63. Considering that they send out a lot of runners, the number of runs is small. He walked 26 on 22 hits and struck out 34 in 27⅓ innings pitched all season. He gives up more walks than hits and strikes out a little more than he walks.
The most important thing for a pitcher is the minimum number of runs. Whether you get hits or walks, the fewer runs you give, the more likely your team is to win. I hope coach Kim Jong-guk does not pay much attention to Lee Eui-ri's sudden ups and downs and walk parade. “Still, loyalty gives less points, so it can be calculated to some extent,” he said.
However, the side effects of the Lee Eui-ri challenge are clear. First of all, it is not easy to manage pitches. He has thrown 569 balls in 27⅓ innings in six games this season. He threw 20.8 balls per inning. Because of this, he never had a quality start. On the day Eui-ri Lee took the mound, the bullpen was busy. Naturally, fielders can lose their cohesiveness as their defense time increases.
Last week, the schedule was to pitch twice a week. On the 25th of last month, in the Gwangju NC game, he gave up 5 hits, 6 strikeouts, 4 walks and 1 run in 4 innings. He wasn't bad, but he went down on 87 pitches. It was a replacement conscious of the game against LG in Jamsil on the 30th of last month, when he had to take a four-day break to pitch.
However, on the 30th of last month, when he threw 102 pitches while giving up 6 hits, 6 strikeouts, 4 walks and 3 runs in 4⅔ innings at the LG game in Jamsil, coach Kim Jong-guk ordered a 'change of knives'. Of course, they were behind 2-3. There were a lot of pitches. Still, once you fill 5 innings, you could expect a dramatic win condition depending on whether or not the other line is reversed.
However, coach Kim thought only of team victory and 야구중계 put in Kim Ki-hoon. Kim Ki-hoon actually caught Kim Min-seong with a fly ball in right field and ended the inning. website Kim Ki-hoon faltered and lost a run in the 6th inning, but Lee Eui-ri’s choice to subtract 2 outs in the 5th was a success.
Coach Kim actively intervenes in the recent game and enjoys it quite a bit. There is no right answer in baseball. However, it is true that coach Kim's choice was right and KIA has been on a good trend recently. After Jung Hae-young was replaced by Lim Ki-young, Lim Ki-young won the save. Choi Ji-min, who was urgently dispatched with no bases full, ran 150km. Pinch hitter Lee Woo-sung hit a home run to tie the game.
As time goes by, the ranking battle intensifies. In the future, depending on the situation, there is a possibility that coach Kim will choose a 'quick hook' instead of watching Eui-ri Lee's challenge as at the beginning of the season. When coach Kim started playing strong baseball last year, the winning rate was quite high.
If Lee Eui-ri wants to avoid such a situation, he just needs to manage the number of pitches well and throw long innings reliably. The 'Full Base Challenge' is thrilling when successful, but the risk of losing a lot and fatigue cannot be ignored. It comes to the conclusion that although the ability to suppress conceding is good, it is impossible not to completely care about the ups and downs of the ball.