ethernetacademy.netIt was a night of chaos before the official departure of the Hangzhou Asian Games team. NC Koo Chang-mo (26) and KIA Lee Yi-ri (21) faced different fates after being cut at the last minute from the Hangzhou Asian Games roster.
The Hangzhou Asian Games team, led by head coach Ryu Jung-il, convened on the 23rd and trained at the Gocheok SkyDome until the 27th. On the 28th, they traveled to Hangzhou, China, for the final match.
However, the Hangzhou Asian Games team suffered a measles epidemic due to roster changes before the 23rd. The team called up Samsung’s Kim Sung-yoon, excluding outfielder Lee Jung-hoo, who had to be replaced on the 21st, and dropped Koo Chang-mo, who had been making rapid progress after suffering a stress fracture of the ulna in his left arm. It was a risk, as he hadn’t pitched in a first-team game since June and was limited to the bullpen. Teammate and bullpen resource Kim Young-gyu was selected.
A day before the 23rd, the team made another roster change. Team manager Ryu Jung-il decided that left-hander Lee Yi-ri wasn’t performing at his best and called up outfielder Yoon Dong-hee (Lotte) instead.
Ryu watched Lee make his first start on July 21 against Daejeon Hanwha. Lee went 1 1/3 innings, giving up five runs (four earned) on two hits, two walks, one hit batter and three strikeouts. The decision to change the roster was made afterward.
Manager Ryu Jung-il said on the 23rd, “I decided to replace Lee Yi-ri one day before the call-up. I’m sorry that Lee Yi-ri was the last player to be replaced.” “I saw Lee Yi-ri get a blister on his finger three days ago. The head trainer kept checking on him. A week later, I checked his finger, and on the 21st, when he started, I went to see him, and I saw the blister before he threw, the blister after he threw less than two innings that day, and the blister afterward.”
“Lee Yi-ri is the best left-handed pitcher in Korea. He was supposed to be the main player against Taiwan and Japan, but in my eyes, he wasn’t. I wondered if he could pitch more than 7-80 pitches as a starter with this blister. I thought about it a lot. I decided to replace him because I didn’t think he could throw more than 80 pitches.”
Lee Yi-ri, however, was able to relax in his first appearance since being eliminated from the national team. On Sept. 23, he started the second game of a doubleheader against NC at NC Park in Changwon and threw 77 pitches, short of 80, but pitched seven innings of three-hit ball with one walk and three strikeouts. He picked up his career-high 11th win. His fastball reached up to 150 mph and stayed in the zone well past 70 pitches. Lee proved that she is still in the game.
After the game, Lee expressed his feelings about being eliminated from the Asian Games in a straightforward manner. “Honestly, I heard about it from the club. I don’t feel very good. They didn’t contact me (from the national team). Maybe I was eliminated because I wasn’t good enough, maybe I was eliminated because I was sick, but I heard it through the team,” he said, expressing his feelings honestly.
The finger is fine Lee laughed as he looked at his finger during the interview. It was an expression of frustration, but he couldn’t show it. I knew it wasn’t good for everyone. Lee handled it with maturity, and it showed on the day. He said, “It’s unfortunate, but I’m a professional if I don’t let it show. It’s disappointing, but you can’t think about that. I have to keep playing, but it’s an embarrassment for the team and a minus for me, so I tried not to think about it as much as possible,” he said, adding, “If I continue to play poorly for the Asian Games, it’s a minus for the team, a minus for me, and a minus for my teammates, so I think it’s a plus that I’m throwing well.” He conveyed his thoughts calmly, maturely, and uniquely.
Lee proved his mettle, but after accepting his elimination from the national team, Koo Chang-mo was left frustrated once again. On Sept. 27, he faced a devastating result at the same venue.
Koo Chang-mo took the mound in the sixth inning of the first game of the doubleheader against KIA on the 27th, following starter Song Myung-ki. Recovering from a fatigue fracture of the ulna in his left arm, he was the second pitcher after Choi Sung-young, who started against LG in Jamsil on the 22nd, and went 2 1/3 innings with 39 pitches, one hit, one walk, and no strikeouts. His fastball was clocked at 146 mph.
It was his second start since returning. The sixth and seventh innings were perfect. He struck out leadoff hitter Park Chan-ho to end a seven-batter hitting streak. But in the top of the eighth, Lee induced Lee Chang-jin to ground out to third base, but Seo Ho-cheol made a throwing error. He then gave up a walk to pinch-hitter Kim Ho-ryung to put runners on first and second.토토사이트
He then threw two fastballs and a forkball to Kim Do-young for two strikes. He then threw a third fastball to Kim Do-young, and Koo Chang-mo made a strange move again. He made a similar gesture when he was injured on June 2 at Jamsil LG Electronics.
He checked his left arm by clenching and unclenching it, but the situation was not good enough to cause his hand to shake while holding the ball. As he walked down the mound, Koo covered his face. He knew it wasn’t good enough.
In the end, he was not wrong. After the second game of the doubleheader, the NC announced, “Koo Chang-mo visited the emergency room of CheongAh Hospital, underwent X-ray and CT examinations, and was diagnosed with a re-fracture of the ulna of the left forearm. He is scheduled to visit a specialized hospital for further examination after October 3.” We can only hope that the further tests will show different results, but at this point, it’s a frustrating outcome for everyone. If the results don’t change, Gu will be out for the season and will have to undergo a lengthy rehabilitation.
A day before departing for Hangzhou, the two left-handed pitchers who were supposed to be the ace of the team faced different outcomes. It was a night of chaos in a different sense.