‘First win as a professional’ KIA’s youngest member of the must-win group has grown wildly, and the Rookie of the Year is also seen

It is definitely an “iron-wall bullpen” to pick the driving force of the KIA Tigers, which is ranked first in professional baseball. This is because the winning team, which is actively operated in the lead situation, perfectly ties up the opponent’s lineup and protects the victory.

As a result, Kia is currently No. 1 in the league with 19 wins and seven losses. It is the only team among the 10 teams with a win rate of around 70 percent (73 percent), and has a three-game gap with the second-ranked NC Dinos.

Kwak Do-gyu, a left-hander born in 2004, who recently won his first victory since his professional debut, is also doing his part as a member of the bullpen. Kwak Do-gyu became the winning pitcher in an away game of the Kiwoom Heroes of the “2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League” held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 23rd. It is the first victory since his debut on the professional stage last year.

Kia did not have a good situation when Kwak was deployed to the mound. Foreign starting pitcher Will Crowe managed to block the first five innings without allowing a single run, while the batting lineup had a 2-0 lead, scoring one run each in the top of the first and fifth innings. Iron-wall bullpens were naturally deployed from the bottom of the sixth inning. That’s why the game seemed to end smoothly.

However, right-handed Jeon Sang-hyun, who took the mound after left-handed Choi Ji-min and Lee Joon-young with two outs and a runner on the second base in the bottom of the eighth inning, gave up a two-run homer to Kiwoom’s Joo Sung-won. The moment the game instantly became tied 2-2. KIA manager Lee Bum-ho lowered Jeon and raised Kwak Do-gyu.

Kwak Do-gyu’s pitching was stable and clean even when the atmosphere was on the verge of overcoming. Kwak Do-gyu finished the inning by striking out the tricky batter Lee Yong-gyu. Kwak Do-gyu, who also took the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning, perfectly organized Kiwoom’s central lineup, which leads to Ronnie Dawson, Song Sung-moon and Choi Joo-hwan with 10 balls.

KIA scored three runs in the top of the 10th inning, and closer Jung Hae-young finished the game without losing a point in the bottom of the 10th inning. As KIA won 5 to 2, Kwak Do-gyu became the winning pitcher for the first time since his professional debut.

Kwak Do-kyu was called by KIA with the 42nd overall pick in last year’s KBO rookie draft. It attracted a lot of attention with a left-hander three-quarter that is rare on the Korean stage. In particular, two-seam fastball is the most confident type of ball Kwak Do-kyu is.

However, his debut season was not smooth. Last year, he played in just 14 games as a relief pitcher. While playing 11 ⅔, he recorded an ERA of 8.49. He struck out 14 and allowed 14 hits and 10 walks.

Ahead of this season, Kwak headed to the U.S.A. Kia sent Kwak to the Seattle Driveline Baseball Center last winter along with Lee Eui-ri, Jeong Hae-young, Yoon Young-chul, and Hwang Dong-ha. At the center, Kwak refined his weaknesses, including ball speed, ball power, and pitching form, through personalized training.

Is it because of this? Kwak has increased expectations for the regular season by allowing no runs in three ⅔ in four games starting from this year’s exhibition games.

Since the opening of the season, his performance has definitely improved from last year. Kwak, who already played 15 games this season, played 12 innings, recording one win, four holds and 18 strikeouts.

Among the four runs, Kwak earned three runs, with an ERA of 2.25 and a batting average of only 186. In particular, in the eight games he played immediately after the opening of the season, he faced 19 batters in five innings, displaying a scoreless streak.

At the current pace, some say that Kwak Do-gyu will receive the Rookie of the Year award this year. Kwak Do-gyu made his professional debut last year, but he is eligible for this year’s Rookie of the Year award as he failed to meet the required innings of 30 innings.

Kwak’s growth is also a big boost for Kia, which is seeking to win its first championship in seven years. “Kwak is a good player by nature,” Kia Tigers coach Lee Bum-ho said. “If he manages his physical stamina and the number of pitches well, he will be able to play a must-win role in the bullpen.”

BY: 토토사이트