Eagles manager to use flamethrowing starter out of bullpen again
DAEJEON, Oct. 19 (Yonhap) -- Hanwha Eagles manager Kim Kyung-moon said Sunday his flamethrowing starter Moon Dong-ju will be available out of the bullpen for the second straight game.
Moon announced his arrival in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason in emphatic fashion Saturday afternoon, when he threw two overpowering innings and struck out four in a 9-8 win over the Samsung Lions in Game 1 of the second round.
Moon touched 161.6 kilometers per hour with a four-seam fastball, the hardest pitch thrown by anyone in the KBO this year.
Moon has been a full-time starter the past two years and was expected to be Game 4 starter of this series if it goes that far. But Kim now plans to use the 21-year-old as a swingman, potentially his biggest weapon in middle innings.
"If Moon Dong-ju is feeling OK physically, he can come in relief during Game 2, depending on the situation," Kim said in his pregame media availability at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark in the central city of Daejeon. "We have some time left until Game 4 (scheduled for Wednesday), and so we will see how Game 2 here plays out."
Moon could potentially step in as the Eagles' closer, in light of recent struggles by the incumbent Kim Seo-hyeon.
Kim blew some big saves toward the end of the regular season, and nearly blew another in Saturday's game. He took the ball in the ninth with the Eagles up 9-6, and then allowed a solo home run and an RBI single before forcing new pitcher Kim Beom-su to clean up the mess and secure the one-run victory.
"We have a lot of postseason baseball left ahead of us," the manager Kim said. "I think our pitching coach spoke with him at length before today's game."
Lions manager Park Jin-man said he was pleased with the way his lineup battled until the end Saturday, which is why he is sticking to the same batting order for Sunday.
"There was no nit to pick with our lineup," Park said. "We've been swinging the bat well lately."
Unlike Moon Dong-ju, the Lions' two young relievers, Lee Ho-sung and Bae Chan-seung, allowed big hits at crucial junctures Saturday. But Park said he wasn't worried about the relievers.
"I was going to speak to them before the game and try to cheer them up, but they looked just fine. I didn't think I needed to do that," Park said with a smile. "I think young players today are so resilient."
jeeho@yna.co.kr
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