A six-year-old military veteran named Sansam and Kim Tae-hyung who won their first game as a sacrifice for a great pitcher...5th Selection Competition Green Light

Feb 14, 2025

photo courtesy of Lotte Giants

[Taipei (Taiwan) = Reporter Kim Young-rok from Sports Chosun] "Wow, Park Jin-gong is so good these days."

Although the game was lost, laughter bloomed on the head coach's face. It was not a joke, it was a sincere satisfaction.

a heavy fastball and stable control. "He knows how to throw strikes and has the ability to run the game." This is a compliment from Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung to Park Jin, who was active as a starter in the second half of last year.

Park Jin's value shone even more in the international competition. The second round of a friendly match against Taiwan's WBC (World Baseball Classic) national team was held at Taipei Dome on the 13th.

Starter Kim Jin-wook was replaced in one inning. With the bases loaded with no outs in the second inning, the coach's patience was over.

a 2-0 lead. It's a test personality, but it's the human mind that doesn't want to collapse easily.

So Park Jin was put in as the next pitcher. A sixth-year professional right-hander who wore a Lotte uniform in the second fourth round (38 times overall) in 2019.

photo courtesy of Lotte Giants

After going through the bullpen last year, he was promoted to the fifth starter at the end of the season. At the end of September last year, when the fall baseball was frustrated, the leading KIA Tigers also succeeded in shooting Yang Hyun-jong 'Great Pitcher'. On September 25, he became a winning pitcher by starting the game against the KIA Tigers and allowing one run on four hits (no outs) in six innings. It was his first start win in five years.

Park Jin's good pitching was amazing. He was not swayed by the absolute crisis of loading the bases with no outs. He caught the first batter, Li Zongxien, with a sacrifice fly to minimize the number of runs, and the next batter, Song Cheong-rae, was doubled to cheer Lotte's bench.

Then, in the third and fourth innings, he finished with a perfect score without getting on base one after another. The contents were also turned to infield ground balls, strikeouts, and fly balls in the outfield.

It's not a pitcher who throws fastballs. Still, he pressured Taiwanese batters with heavy fastballs of up to 144 and an average of 140 kilometers on the day. On top of that, he mixed a slider, a curve, and a fork ball to draw the bat. As a real Busan man, he stood out for his gutsy pitching that did not fear his opponent. He pitched only 25 pitches in three innings.

photo courtesy of Lotte Giants

Above all, 'You have to actively confront the other person. Manager Kim Tae-hyung's encouragement of 'Throw boldly' is the right pitcher. Park Jin-eun told reporters in the past that she had not been confident. As I ran away to avoid being hit, I used to be at a disadvantage. As the coach said, active throwing yields good results and gives me confidence." There are also new weapons being prepared to meet more horizontal changes.

With the impressive pitching of the day, Park Jin has gained an advantage in the starting competition this season. For Lotte, Barnes, Davidson, and Park Se-woong are solid in the third starting line, and Kim Jin-wook was the most likely fourth starting line. The fifth starter appeared to be a competition between veterans such as Na Kyun-an and Han Hyun-hee.

However, while Park Jin and Park Joon-woo pitched well in the two consecutive games in Taiwan, the head coach's mind is shaking as other pitchers are sluggish.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.