At a time when the team seemed to be on the rise, there were injuries and rain caused trouble again. The commander’s concerns are bound to deepen. Will the KIA Tigers, who have to play all week without a rest day, be able to overcome the crisis?
KIA, which has increased its pace since the end of last month, continued its good trend until the Gwangju LG Twins game on the 10th. After losing 0-3 in the away game against the Doosan Bears on the 7th, the mood seemed to have calmed down with a 2-12 loss against LG the next day, but thanks to the double header win on the 9th, the losing streak did not extend. The players also regained confidence after breaking away from losing streak.
But soon enough, the flow turned again. KIA, who bowed 9-10 against the Daegu Samsung Lions on the 12th, lost 1-3 in the home game against the Lotte Giants on the 13th. Due to heavy rain during the game, they were unable to play the entire game and had to accept a rain cold defeat in the 6th inning.
KIA, who seemed to be taking a breather due to the cancellation of the match against Lotte on the 14th due to rain, lost 6-8 in the first game of the series against Doosan on the 15th. Starting pitcher Yoon Young-cheol came down the mound after 3⅔ innings and as many as seven relievers poured in, but he was unable to maintain the lead until the end.
The aftermath continued until the Doosan game on the 17th, with KIA losing 3-8 and falling into a quagmire of four consecutive losses. It was the first four consecutive losses in the second half of the season, and when expanded to the entire season, it has been about four months since the Gwangju SSG Landers game on May 10th and the Jamsil Doosan game on the 13th. The team’s ranking also went down one level from 4th to 5th.
In addition, KIA is the team that has experienced the most rain cancellations (23 games) in the league, and is scheduled to hold double headers for two consecutive weeks, including the Changwon NC Dinos game on the 27th and the Suwon KT Wiz game on the 4th of next month. For KIA, which has almost no rest days for the time being, the tight schedule is burdensome.메이저놀이터
KIA coach Kim Jong-guk also has a lot of concerns. Before the Doosan game on the 17th, Manager Kim diagnosed the current situation by saying, “We have a double header for two weeks in a row, and I have a lot of concerns about the starters. The same goes for the bullpen.” He also said, “There are a few injuries to the fielders, and their overall condition has declined.” did.
Coach Kim, who emphasized that this week is the most important, said, “I think we need to reorganize. Excluding the players who will play for the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games national team (Choi Won-jun, Choi Ji-min, and Lee Ui-ri), we need to reorganize, and the fielding lineup needs to be reorganized a little more.” “I need it. I think it’s going to be an important week,” he sighed.
Starting with the Doosan game on the 18th, KIA will face LG and Kiwoom Heroes at home on the 19th and 20th, respectively, and then play against the Hanwha Eagles once in Daejeon on the 21st. After the Hanwha game, we must immediately return to Gwangju and face the three-game series against KT. With a literally ‘no time to catch a breath’ schedule waiting, it remains to be seen whether KIA, which is in crisis, can survive the competition for mid-tier status.