The LG Twins are in first place. Their two-hit performance is also good.
They are first with a 3.31 ERA and first with a team batting average of 2.9/1, meaning their two-hit performance is the best among the 10 teams.
LG has struggled with its starting pitching in Korea, but still ranks first with a 3.26 ERA. The bullpen ranks fifth overall with a 3.63 ERA due to the loss of Ko Woo-seok to injury and the struggles of Jung Woo-young.
However, the bullpen is getting better. The bullpen has been on a roll. Ham Deok-ju and Park Myung-geun have been perfect in the month of May as double stoppers since Ko Woo-seok went down with an injury.
In nine games, Ham is 1-3 with three saves and a 0.00 ERA. In 10⅔ innings, he has allowed just two hits and one walk while striking out a whopping 13 batters.
Myung-geun Park is 1-4 with two saves and a 0.90 ERA in 11 games.
The duo preserved the win against the Gwangju KIA Tigers on June 26. Ham came in with runners on first and second in the bottom of the sixth inning with a 4-1 lead and struck out Ryu Ji-hyeok, then retired the rest of the batters he faced in the top of the seventh inning, giving up a single to Socrates. Trailing 5-3 in the bottom of the ninth, Park came on in relief and gave up a single to the first batter, Kim Sun-bin, putting runners on first and second, but he struck out Ko Jong-wook to end the game and earn the save.
LG is on a roll in May with 14 wins, one tie, four losses, and a winning percentage of 7.7, thanks in large part to the duo’s combined 2-7 record and five saves.
Add to that the fact that last year’s hold king, Jung Woo-young, seems to be back on track after a poor April.
In 22 appearances this season, Jung has a 4-4 record with nine holds and a 4.34 ERA. May is getting better. He had a rough start to the month, but since May 18 against KT in Jamsil, he’s had five consecutive scoreless games. Because he was so anxious, he sometimes appeared early as a middle reliever instead of a set-up man, but now he is in his position in the eighth inning. Against KIA on the 26th, he came out in the 8th inning and recorded a hold, ending with a light triple play.
The LG bullpen is getting stronger and stronger, and the best will be back in June. Last year’s save king, Go Woo-seok, will be back. After complaining of back pain after pitching against the KIA on April 30, he was found to have micro-muscle damage and began treatment and rehabilitation. On April 26, he appeared in a Futures League game against the Hanwha Eagles in Seosan and pitched one inning of one-hit ball. He fanned just eight batters and topped out at 151 kilometers per hour. He will make one more appearance with the second team before deciding whether to pitch with the first team or the second team once more.
When Go Woo-seok returns in June, the LG bullpen will be even stronger. With three saves, the bullpen will have a variety of different types of closers, including orthodox, left-handed, and sidearm. Obviously, Go Woo-seok will be the closer and Park Myung-geun and Ham Deok-joo will be the setup men, but having a closer who can step in when Go Woo-seok has a day off or is having a bad day gives the team more stability.안전놀이터
The key now is to stay injury-free. Go Woo-seok has been injured twice, once with a shoulder injury at the WBC and more recently with a back injury, while batsman Lee Jae-won has been out twice with side injuries and recently with a sore thigh. Fourth starter Lee Min-ho also missed nearly two months with an injury, disrupting the starting rotation for a while. LG is certainly back on track in the two-hitter department, but how they manage their injuries will have a big impact on their chances of winning the regular season.