The LG Twins of professional baseball suffered two consecutive losses after winning seven games in a row.
LG was crushed 1-7 by Samsung at Jamsil Stadium on the 30th. The first starter, Ens, pitched as the starter, but fell short of expectations with four runs in six innings. His ERA in the second half was 0.47, but he became the losing pitcher after allowing two home runs to the Samsung batting line. LG’s batting coach Choi Seung-jun was arrested on the morning of the 29th after refusing to take a drunk driving test by the police, and LG terminated Coach Choi’s contract on the 30th. The team atmosphere is not good after losing two games in a row.
LG will have left-handed pitcher Son Joo-young pitch against Samsung on the 31st. Although he is the fifth starter, his pitching content and performance this season are comparable to that of the first starter.
Son Joo-young has appeared in 18 games (93 innings) and has recorded 7 wins, 5 losses, and an ERA of 3.48. Within the LG team, he is second in wins after foreign player Ens (9 wins, 4 losses, ERA 4.04). His ERA is also more stable than Ens, Choi Won-tae (4.94), and Lim Chan-gyu (4.35). He did not meet the required number of innings, but his ERA is lower than Samsung Won Tae-in (3.54), who is first in the domestic league.
Choi Won-tae and Lim Chan-gyu both suffered injuries and were out for about a month, but Son Ju-young has not missed the starting rotation. Despite this being his first full-time season, he has not yet shown any physical problems.
Son Ju-young is also strong against Samsung this season.
He has appeared in two games this season, recording 1 win, 0 losses, and an ERA of 0.79. He has pitched 11⅓ innings, allowing 9 hits, striking out 7, and allowing 3 runs (1 earned run).
His first appearance of the season was against Samsung on March 28. He recorded his first win with a perfect 6-inning shutout. On June 12, 안전놀이터 he allowed 6 hits and 3 runs (1 earned run) in 5⅓ innings in the Daegu Samsung game. He was replaced when the score was 4-3, but the bullpen allowed a comeback and the win was blown away.
Son Ju-young pitched his life in the Jamsil Doosan game on the 21st. He pitched 7 innings for the first time since his professional debut and became the winning pitcher with 6 hits and 3 runs (2 earned runs). After that, he rested for 9 days due to a rainout.
Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop adjusted his schedule to have his first starter Ens pitch twice this week on Tuesday and Sunday and have Son Ju-young pitch twice next week on Tuesday and Sunday. He currently has more confidence in Son Ju-young’s pitching ability than Choi Won-tae and Lim Chan-gyu.
Son Ju-young joined LG in the 2nd round (2nd overall) of the 2017 rookie draft.
Son is 191cm tall and has good hardware. He has pitched 65⅔ innings in 22 games until last year. Son completed his military service and had surgery, so his number of appearances is small.
He got a chance to start in 2022, but he pitched in 3 games after the opening and had surgery due to an elbow injury. Son focused on rehabilitation in the Futures League until last year and appeared in 3 games in the first team.
He was selected as the 5th starter this season. Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop expects Son Ju-young, who throws a fastball of 150km and has the advantage of being a left-handed pitcher, to grow into a left-handed pitcher representing the league in the future.
LG’s 100th game of the season is against Samsung on the 31st. If Son Ju-young pitches 7 innings again, he will be able to fill the required innings (100 innings).