LG Twins pitcher Lee Jung-yong, who has been on a roll since making the switch to the starting rotation, delivered another top-notch performance to lead his team to victory.
LG avenged the previous day’s loss with a 6-3 victory in the 14th game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against the Samsung Lions at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on Saturday. The season record is 62 wins, 2 draws, and 36 losses.
Lee Jung-yong, who took over the starting duties, did not give up a single run in six innings, striking out six and walking one to earn his second career quality start. He also got some run support from his offense to pick up his fifth win of the season.
After giving up a double and a bunt single to table-setters Kim Hyun-joon and Kim Sung-yoon, respectively, in the first inning, Lee gave up a run on Kang Min-ho’s grounder to second base that scored pinch runner Kim Hyun-joon, but settled down from there to record three consecutive scoreless innings in the second.
Although Lee Jeong-yong faced a bases-loaded, 1-3 situation in the bottom of the fifth inning after a leadoff double by Kim Dong-jin and an error by shortstop Kim Min-sung, and then scored on a sacrifice fly by Kim Sung-yoon, he finished his duties without allowing any more runs. LG manager Yoon Kyung-yeop praised the pitcher, saying, “I think the biggest achievement is that Lee Jung-yong is showing stable form as a starter.”
After the game, Lee said, “It feels good to win. The batters hit well, the defense helped me, and the pitchers in the middle did a good job, so I was able to get the win. I always try to do my best on the mound.”
“I thought I should throw a long inning before the game so that the pitchers behind me could play comfortably, and I thought I would throw six innings and come down,” said Lee, who wanted to fulfill his responsibilities as a starter. 토토사이트 “I’m glad I achieved my goal and came down,” he smiled.
“I’m glad I accomplished my goal,” he smiled, “and I’m glad I came down.” Everyone cheered when the bases were loaded in the top of the sixth inning with the score at 1-2, but it was Lee Jung-yong who was the happiest of all. “We gave them the lead, but I didn’t think we were going to lose if I went down. I thought Dong-won would do it, and he did,” he laughs.
Lee Jeong-yong, who is fulfilling his starting duties with the trust of his manager, said, “I think starting pitchers have a lot of tension and bullpen pitchers have a lot of pressure. I’m going to try to throw long innings differently than when I’m pitching in the middle, and if I have a bad inning, I’m going to try to control my mind by thinking that I’m going to start fresh in the next inning.”