‘Is it a smoke screen?’ LG repeats Jurusa in public blue-and-white game with 13,245 people—KS partner KT could be weaponized

It was like a March exhibition game. I would get on base, run to the next base, and the runners would come around again and again. The pitchers seemed to know each other, and the runners were consistently thrown out at the plate.

Of course, the result doesn’t matter. It’s all about the process. Still, it was the last practice before the Korean Series (KS). It was a game to show the fans that they had prepared well. It was the Blue-White Game at LG Jamsil Stadium, which was attended by 13,245 people on the 4th.

The game was a pitcher’s duel. Im Chan-kyu, who was designated as the starter for KS’s Game 3, and Kim Yoon-sik, the starter for Game 4, started side by side. Kim Jin-sung, Jung Woo-young, Lee Jung-yong, Yoo Young-chan, Baek Seung-hyun, Son Ju-young, Park Myung-geun, and Choi Dong-hwan pitched on the KS mound. The home team won 3-1 over the away team in their home jerseys.

And as the game progressed, there was a steady stream of base runners. In the first inning, leadoff hitter Choi Min-chang led off with a single up the middle and tried to steal second base, but was blocked by Lim Chan-kyu. In the third inning, third baseman Koo Bon-hyuk tried to steal home on a double steal with first baseman Song Chan-ui, but the home team’s infield seemed to be prepared for it, relaying from pitcher to first baseman to catcher to shortstop to tag him out.

KS also had a pinch-hitter on base. In the bottom of the third, Shin Min-jae singled up the middle and was thrown out trying to steal second. Hong Chang-ki singled and moved to second base, but was tagged out by Heo Do-hwan’s throw. In the bottom of the ninth, Oh Do-hwan led off with an infield single and failed to steal second base. They repeatedly stole second base.

It wasn’t the only failure. Choi Seung-min, who pinch-hit for Kim Hyun-soo, Austin, and Park Dong-won, stole two bases. In the bottom of the eighth, Park Hae-min led off with a single to right, stole second, and came home on Kim Hyun-soo’s single. Still, stealing more than seven out of 10 bases is not a great success rate.

Of course, this is a blue-and-white game, so a stolen base is a defensive success. In the short game, where every play counts, both offense and defense can be checked, so they can play aggressively against each other. This season, LG has attempted and failed to steal an unusually high number of bases. With 268 stolen bases, 166 successful stolen bases, and 102 unsuccessful stolen bases, they have played more, succeeded more, and died more than any other team. 아톰카지노

And those team colors could be even stronger in KS, where they face KT. This season, LG has 33 stolen bases in 16 meetings with KT. They have stolen 7 bases with a success rate of 82.5%. KT’s main catcher, Jang Jang-woo, has a stolen base rate of 14.6%. William Cuevas, who throws exceptionally well in fall ball, also has a weakness in his slide step. LG’s running game has been most successful against KT, and LG has a 10-6 record against KT.

Coach Yeom Kyung-yup predicted KT’s victory in Game 5 of the Playoffs (PO) before the game against Cheongbaek on April 4. He said the tide was in KT’s favor at the time and predicted that KT would win the NC if the PO Game 5, scheduled for the 5th, was not canceled due to rain. As expected, KT won and became LG’s KS partner.

The game against Cheongbaeik on the 4th was also different from the previous five games. On this day, LG also tried out first baseman Moon Bo-kyung. Moon, who never played first base during the regular season, donned the first base mitt. Moon is no stranger to first base. She played first and third base until last year, and was the starting first baseman at the Asian Games about a month ago.

With Kim Min-sung at third base and Moon Bok-kyung at first base covering the corners of the infield, the defense was tested in another way late in the game. Having Kim Min-sung at third and Moon Bok-kyung at first would have lessened the offensive impact of Austin’s absence than having Jeong Ju-hyun at first.

LG went through several scenarios in their minds before the final practice against KS.