It was a dizzying day for the Samsung Lions of the Korean pro baseball league. As the team is struggling in a "tough" mode due to the large number of injuries, two of the best hitters in the team have been replaced after being hit by balls. Fortunately, simple bruises have prevented the worst from happening, but it is worrisome whether there will be side effects.
Samsung lost 1-3 against Hanwha in Daejeon on the 6th, losing for the second four consecutive games of the season. There may be consecutive losses during the long season, but what was more worrisome was the injury replacement of Koo Ja-wook and Kang Min-ho.
Leading hitter Koo Ja-wook was elbowed by Hanwha starter Ryu Hyun-jin. With runners on base with two outs in the third inning, Ryu's first pitch of 145 km per hour went deep into his body and hit Koo Ja-wook's right elbow guard.온라인바카라
Koo Ja-wook, who was hit by the ball in an inevitable way, jumped from the batter's box to the batter's box and collapsed on the spot. Ryu Hyun-jin expressed his apology from the mound to the batter's box, and Koo Ja-wook continued to run on base despite the pain, but was replaced by Kim Tae-geun before the defense in the third inning and headed to the hospital.
To make matters worse, Samsung's catcher Kang Min-ho was hit by the ball in the eighth inning of defense. It was Chae's fourth foul, which hit her in the left knee. It was a foul, but it slightly touched the tip of the bat, and it was like being hit directly by Bae Chan-seung's fastball at 146 km/h. It was a place with knee pads, but it was difficult to completely absorb the pain.
Kang Min-ho, who has played in 2,404 games, the most in the history of the KBO League, is well-known as a Diamond Bulbul with almost no injuries. He was a player who endured most pain, but he was not able to do that on the day. He limped off the ground and was replaced by arch-bi Kim Jae-sung.
Fortunately, both players avoided the worst. Koo was found to have simple bruises on his elbow, but was told that he would suffer pain for several days. Kang Min-ho also underwent icing and treatment with simple bruises on his knees. It is fortunate that neither of them has broken bones, but it remains to be seen whether he will be able to play in the match against Hanwha on Wednesday due to pain and swelling.
Samsung has not achieved its best performance this year due to injuries. Before the season, bullpen pitcher Kim Moo-shin was out for the season due to Tommy John surgery on his elbow, and outfielder Lee Sung-kyu was left due to side damage. Foreign pitcher Denny Reyes also failed to enter the opening starting rotation due to a fractured metatarsal micro-fatigue.
Even after the opening, the injury continued. Veteran Lim Chang-min was listed on the injured list on the 19th of last month due to bone fragment pain in his elbow in the bullpen, and rookie Lee Jae-hee, who stood out as a new must-win player, was out for the season after receiving Tommy John surgery on his elbow after the game against Daegu NC on the 25th of last month.
On the fielder's side, center fielder Kim Ji-chan (hamstring), third baseman Kim Young-woong (Garratot), and outfielder Kim Heon-gon (back) were injured in succession last week alone. It is already in the midst of a nine-game series scheduled for Monday's Children's Day, but it is going through a tough May as the number of injuries has continued. Although there is still room for 19 wins and 17 losses and a margin of +2, a sense of crisis is rising amid repeated injuries.
Samsung coach Park Jin-man also repeatedly answered questions about players who were injured in pre-match interviews. "Kim Young-woong will come back 10 days from now for sure, but Kim Ji-chan will have to wait and see. Kim Hun-gon is a player who had waist problems before, so he could come back 10 days later or longer. May is the most important time, so I think I need to hang in there."
"Lim Chang-min is planning to return to the team around the end of May," Park said even before the game on Wednesday. "I think he is holding up well even when there are many injured players and the pitching and hitting balance are not well balanced. If injured players join the team normally, they will improve significantly in hitting and defense. We need to manage with the players we have now and endure this period well."
However, as Koo Ja-wook and Kang Min-ho were replaced after being hit by the ball one after another on the day, coach Park also had to brief the injured players before the game on the 7th.