LG Twins manager Yeom Kyung-yeop finally had a smile on his face after losing Game 1 of the Korean Series.
LG won the second game of the 2023 Baseball Korea Series (KS-7 best-of-four) 5-4 at Jamsil Stadium on Monday, thanks to a dramatic come-from-behind two-run homer by Park Dong-won in the bottom of the eighth inning to even the series at 1-1.
For LG, it was a difficult game as starter Choi Won-tae collapsed early on. However, the bullpen of Lee Jung-yong, Jeong Woo-young, Kim Jin-sung, Baek Seung-hyun, Yoo Young-chan, Ham Deok-joo, and Go Woo-seok were mobilized early and pitched 8⅔ scoreless innings to set the stage for the comeback. In the bottom of the eighth inning, trailing 3-4, Park Dong-won hit a two-run home run with the bases loaded for a thrilling comeback victory.
“Park Dong-won hit a home run at the most crucial moment to win the game. Today’s victory was not just one win, but a game that gave us confidence in the series.”
“I thought the young bullpen would struggle because of their inexperience, but they had a good experience today and I think we can use them boldly in the rest of the series,” said Yeom Kyung-yeop. “It was a big help that the bullpen was in good shape and we had a lot of cards to play.”
As for Choi Won-tae, who collapsed earlier in the day, he also revealed his concerns about how to utilize him in the future. “I thought Choi Won-tae would pitch more than five innings, but he got into trouble early on because his pitches weren’t working,” said Yoon Kyung-yeop. “With Choi Won-tae going out quickly, I was able to use him as a card for the fourth game. I think we need to think about whether to go with Kim Yun-sik or Choi Won-tae for the fourth game, or whether to remove Choi Won-tae altogether.”
He also expressed his expectations and satisfaction with Go Woo-seok as a finisher. “I didn’t think Go Woo-seok’s pitching was bad yesterday, it was just that he made one mistake and the opponent hit it well,” said Yoon Kyung-yeop. “We can only achieve our goal if Go Woo-seok is behind us. We had a meeting and talked about the parts of the fastball that weren’t working well, and I passed on the technical parts to the staff, and it worked.”
He wasn’t worried about leadoff hitter Hong Chang-gi’s slump. “I don’t have any worries about Hong Chang-gi. I think she will find her form one day,” he said.
“I was really sorry when we lost yesterday,” he said, “but the fans were very 토토사이트 supportive. I was sorry that I couldn’t reciprocate the fans’ support, and I couldn’t sleep,” he said. “I’m grateful to the players who didn’t give up until the end so that the fans could go home smiling.”
Meanwhile, KT Wiz coach Lee Kang-cheol was deeply disappointed with the loss. “We scored four runs in the first inning, but I think we played a tough game with no extra runs,” he said. “Our bullpen pitchers looked a little tired, but I think they’ll do well with a day off tomorrow.”
