I guess he didn't feel it with Kim Do-young's skin. Director Kim Tae-hyung's disappointing smile in the middle, a lesson learned from his first loss

May 14, 2025

Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung is preparing for the match between Lotte and KIA at Gwangju KIA Champions Field on the 13th. Gwangju = Reporter's book@sportschosun.com/2025.05.13/

Lotte Davidson, who finished the inning after three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning at Gwangju KIA Champions Field on the 13th, is heading to the dugout. Gwangju = Reporter's book@sportschosun.com/2025.05.13/

"I guess I didn't feel Kim Do-young (KIA Tigers) with my skin. He just put it in the middle."

Lotte Giants manager Kim Tae-hyung smiled despondently as he recalled the previous day's game before the match against the Gwangju KIA Tigers on the 14th. Lotte sought to win five consecutive games with foreign pitcher Tucker Davidson in the match against KIA in Gwangju on the 13th, but lost 1-4. In the match, Davison failed to overcome KIA sluggers Kim Do-young and Choi Hyung-woo.

Davison gave up hits to Han Seung-taek and Park Chan-ho in the bottom of the fifth inning, putting him on the verge of being on the first and second bases with two outs. One out count could have ended the inning, but the next batter was Kim Do-young, the most demanding player in KIA. Kim Do-young briefly slowed down in the aftermath of this year's hamstring injury, but he is the league's top hitter who won MVP in 141 games last year with a batting average of 0.347 (189 hits in 544 at-bats), 38 homers, 40 steals, and 109 RBIs. It was necessary to make the game as difficult as possible.

But Davison chose a bold game. He tried to catch it with a fastball from the first pitch. There was no way Kim Do-young missed the ball formed in the middle of the strike zone. He allowed a timely two-run double to left-center to lose the first point of 0-2. Choi Hyung-woo then gave up a timely hit to the right of center field, leading to 0-3.

Lotte Davidson, who faced a crisis of one out and first and second bases in the bottom of the fifth inning at Gwangju KIA Champions Field on the 13th, is talking to pitching coach Joo Hyung-kwang on the mound. Gwangju = Reporter's book@sportschosun.com/2025.05.13/

Lotte and KIA at Gwangju KIA Champions Field on the 13th, and KIA Kim Do-young hits the first two-run double with two outs and runners on the first and second bases in the bottom of the fifth inning. Gwangju = Reporter's book@sportschosun.com/2025.05.13/

With Lotte's batters rarely bursting, Davison's three runs were quite large. Lotte ended its five-game winning streak without making up for the gap to the end. Davison had his first loss of the season even after recording a quality start with 108 pitches, seven hits, two outs and four strikeouts, and three runs in six innings.

Coach Kim said, `I told him on the bench yesterday (13th) to have a hard time, but I guess he didn't feel Kim Do-young with his skin. He just put it in the middle (laughs). Second and third bases, first and second bases are the same, but I'm putting it in the first pitch, so I joked and expressed my regret.

Still, Davison was a big help to Lotte's mound this year, taking on the first starter duty amid the release of ace Charlie Barnes due to sluggishness and injury. The season's performance is the highest in the league with five wins and one loss, 53 ⅔ innings, and a 2.01 ERA in nine games. It also has a sense of stability enough to record quality starts seven times.

Coach Kim said positively, `Davidson certainly has a sense of stability,' and hoped not to repeat his regret of allowing Kim Do-young a painful shot.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.