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| The KBO League exhibition game between Lotte and Hanwha at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 14th. Lotte Park Jin pitches against Hanwha Noh Si-hwan in the first inning. Busan = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.03.14/ |
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"First of all, Na Gyunan, but..."
Lotte Giants manager Kim Tae-hyung chose Na Kyun-an as the fifth starter who drew attention while forming the starting lineup this season.
The reason why I was curious about Lotte's 5th starter was because of Park Jin, a strong candidate for spring camp MVP, who would not know if there were no other candidates.
Park Jin did not shake much even after entering the exhibition game. On the 9th, he gave up two scoreless innings against the KIA Tigers. And he slowed down a little by allowing one run in ⅔ innings against the LG Twins on the 11th, but he took the mound as a starter against the Hanwha Eagles on the 14th and kept 3 scoreless innings, making a demonstration against manager Kim as if he had already decided on the 5th starter.
He was a native of Busan High School and did not show any significant performance since joining the team in 2019, but he got the opportunity at the end of last season when he caught the eye of head coach Kim. And he confidently competed for the fifth starting pitcher in this season's spring camp.
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| The KBO League exhibition game between Lotte and LG held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 11th. Lotte's Na Kyun-an, who is pitching as a starter. Busan = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.03.11/ |
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Ahead of the exhibition game against KT Wiz, which was canceled due to rain on the 15th, head coach Kim said "Park Jin-yi threw well "It has improved since the second half of last year." At the end of the ball, he gained strength and improved a lot. So I also tested as a candidate for the 5th selection. Still, I think it's right to give priority to Na Kyun-an, who was playing as a starter, first, he said, signaling that the result will not change.
Still, it was not meaningless pitching for Park Jin. It was a moment to establish itself as a No. 1 alternative in Kim's mind. Coach Kim said, `We may not have a chance right now, but we don't know what the situation will be like (in the season), so the next players should go in," he stressed. When asked "In the current situation, can Park Jin be considered the first priority if there is a problem with the starting rotation?" coach Kim replied "Yes." There is also left-hander Shim Jae-min in Park Jin."
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| The KBO League exhibition game between Lotte and LG held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 11th. Lotte won against LG. Coach Kim Tae-hyung greets his fans after the game. Busan = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.03.11/ |
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Coach Kim also mentioned rookie Park Se-hyun, who took the mound after Park Jin, and Lee Byung-joon, who joined in 2021 and appeared like a comet after serving in the military. As for Park Se-hyun, who allowed no runs in one inning with 148 kilometers of fastballs, coach Kim said, "We need players who throw late 140 kilometers to the bullpen to become a power struggle"It was announced that he would be interested and constantly checked rather than playing in the first team immediately." "Depending on how things change this year," he said, also mentioning the possibility of a call-up. The ball itself means that he likes it. On Lee Byung-joon who threw at the end of the ninth inning, Lee threw up to 150 kilometers in the second division. Yesterday, he couldn't throw his ball."
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
