KIA’s No. 1 solo leader, Park Jeon-moon, returns to the game ‘9th inning is strong’

Park Jeon-moon is back in the game.

Kia Tigers right-hander Jeon Sang-hyun (28) once said that he had forgotten about Park Jeon-moon. Most athletes have a habit of going back to their good days when they’re not performing well. However, Jeon believes that going back to the past is not the right answer because his body is different from his current body.

That’s how Jeon overcame a mini-slump in the first half of the 2023 season and returned to being a reliable main setup man in the second half. He regained his power by utilizing his long extension and finding the right pitching balance for his body. Unlike his nagging injuries in 2022, he had a healthy year.

This season is no different. Jeon has been as consistent as a green pine tree. Of course, this season also had its bad moments. He gave up a few big runs at the beginning of the season, and his ERA was out of control. His ERA is still in the four-run range (4.64). However, Jeon always takes the mound and pitches his game, even when things aren’t going well, he doesn’t run away and collapse.

Finisher Jung Hae-young complained of shoulder muscle pain in the first game of the Gwangju doubleheader against the Hanwha Eagles on June 23. He left the team. Jeon struggled in that game, giving up two runs in one inning. However, in the second game of the doubleheader, the first game after Jeong’s departure, he pitched a scoreless inning.

In seven games in July, he allowed two runs (one earned) on nine hits, five walks, four strikeouts, and four strikeouts in nine innings for a 2-4 record and a 1.00 ERA. Including the two 메이저사이트 games of Hanwha’s doubleheader, his ERA was 2.45 in nine games. The team’s closing staff has improved since Jung’s departure.

He is the same closing force he was when Park was in the organization, but he took a break due to injury. As he said, he changed his body and mind. But the scene of Jeon protecting KIA’s lead and sealing the win remains the same. Kia won all seven games in July in which Jeon pitched.

The game against the Hanwha Eagles on the 21st was a difficult one. The team was trailing from the middle of the game. In the ninth inning, Choi Hyung-woo’s three-run homer suddenly turned the game around and created a save situation. In reality, Lee Bum-ho was right to utilize a closer. Jeon Sang-hyun might have been prepared to pitch on short notice, or he might not have warmed up as much as he normally does.

However, Jeon earned the save with one inning of two-hit ball, striking out one and walking none. He finished the game with a mid-90s fastball, forkball, and slider. The KIA bullpen was down to Jeong Jung-young and Choi Ji-min. However, Jeon Sang-hyun pitched a solid ninth inning. He was the key to Kia’s late inning comeback to take the lead.