LG Twins manager Yeom Kyung-yeop (58) expressed his intention to support and wait for his student's challenge, who took on a new challenge without being obsessed with fastballs.바카라사이트

Last winter, Jung Woo-young (26) was one of the most highly anticipated players at LG. Jung headed to the Tread Athletic Center in the U.S. with his own money after the end of last season in a desperate bid to recover from the slump that had continued in recent years. According to Jung's announcement through his club, the Tread Athletic Center has clearly identified his problems over the past two years. His arm height was significantly lower than when he was good in the past, and he revised this part to receive favorable reviews from LG coaches that his ball control has stabilized and his overall movement has improved during the U.S. spring camp.

However, his first pitch in front of fans on the 8th was somewhat disappointing. Jung Woo-young, who took the mound in the bottom of the fourth inning against Suwon KT Wiz with one out, threw seven balls in a row. That's how he sent left-handed batter Kim Min-hyuk on a walk, and Hwang Jae-gyun committed a wild pitch at the next at-bat, allowing additional bases. With the help of second baseman Shin Min-jae, Hwang Jae-gyun was barely hit straight, but Bae Jung-dae allowed another walk after two strikes, and was replaced by Song Seung-ki and substituted.

On the day, Jung threw a total of 14 pitches (seven two-seam fastballs, five sliders, and two fastballs) and recorded only three strikes. His maximum speed was only 146 kilometers per hour, showing a significant change from previous years in both control and speed.

Jung Woo-young, who joined LG as the 15th pick in the second round of the KBO Rookie Draft in 2019 after graduating from Seoul High School, once drew attention as a right-hander side arm who threw 157 kilometers per hour fastball. With his fast-seam fastball as the main weapon, he became the hold king with 2 wins, 3 losses and 35 holds with an ERA of 2.64 in 67 games in 2022. However, since then, his speed has dropped significantly and his weakness of relying on only one fastball has not been compensated for, and he has gone downhill. His performance in the past two years has been 7 wins, 7 losses and 14 holds with an ERA of 4.72 in 87 games, which is far from a must-win group.

While inevitable supplementation of slide steps in the sidearm has been pointed out as the reason for the drop in speed, manager Yeom Kyung-yeop shook his head at this part. "Jung Woo-young did not lose speed by modifying the set motion. I want to be accurate. When I took charge of LG in my first year, (Jung) Woo-young was already the hold king. Who would touch a great pitcher?" Yeom told reporters ahead of the game on Sunday.

"I played for one season, but my ball count didn't go up yet. I also had a lot of ball count, so I had to fill in the details whether I add a breaking ball or increase my ball control." "Since my ball count doesn't go up yet, I have to fill in the details to become a good pitcher only when I fill in with something else, but that hasn't been filled up yet," he added.

He also considered his shocking seven consecutive walks on Sunday (April 8) to be an adjustment process. "I am not the type to be nervous about (Jung) Woo-young's performance in the U.S. for the first time in a long time. You can say that the form he learned in the U.S. has not settled down yet. I don't think that will work overnight," Yeom said. "Even if I think that's a good method in the U.S., it will take some time for him to settle down. If it's Woo-young's performance is good, we can't force him to do anything. We just give directions."

Jung Woo-young also did not expect to see improvement in a short period of time. The reason he chose the Tread Athletic Center was because it was not intended to be effective in a short period of time throughout the year, but gave feedback to players who share pitching video and data throughout the year.

In the end, it was best to trust the player and wait for him. To that end, we have prepared ourselves for him, including the must-win group, the pursuit group, and the plans A and B. "Jung Woo-young is a player that we should use after all. There are not many players in our team with that kind of experience, and he is still young, so he has a good chance to find his own and grow up," Yeom said.

"In the end, all we can do is to give the players time and wait for them to make their own. Rather than expecting them to do well right away, it is important to prepare and continue to do well whether it is in the second half of this year or next year. That is why we will give them a chance. We have to keep throwing. As we play, we feel what we lack and we can fill it up through training," he said with a smile.