“I hope next time I’m on the mound, hitters can score runs and make it a win.”
Early last month, Lee Seung-yeop (47), manager of the Doosan Bears, said the following when talking about right-hander Choi Won-joon (29) during an interview with reporters.
In his first appearance this season, on the 2nd of last month, in a home game against the Lotte Giants, Choi Won-joon pitched well with 5 hits, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts and 2 runs in 7 innings, but became a losing pitcher. It was because the opposing starter, Na Gyun-an (25), pitched 6⅔ innings scoreless, and there was no scoring support from the other team.
At the time, coach Lee, who praised Choi Won-joon’s pitching, saying, “The location was good, and the power of the ball and the breaking ball were good,” urged batters to exert themselves. He expressed regret, saying, “(Choi Won-joon) last year (8 wins, 13 losses, average ERA of 3.60) was good at pitching, but I know he couldn’t raise the number of wins.”
And more than a month has passed since the opening, but Choi Won-joon’s multiplier is still at ‘0’. He had 3 quality starts (6 or more innings, 3 earned runs or less) out of 5 appearances, including his first game, until the 10th game, but no starts. Rather, he only recorded two defeats.
Wonjun Choi. /Photo = Doosan Bears
On the 10th, ahead of the resignation Lotte game, coach Lee once again said, “When (Choi) Won-joon threw, the other line never helped him, so I think it’s time to help him.” He evaluated, “Today (10th) I throw, and Choi Won-joon can pitch more comfortably if I make it a little easier on the other line, but he seems to be struggling alone.” At the same time, coach Lee said, “I hope (the other line) will help Choi Won-joon.안전놀이터
Choi Won-joon will have a return match with Lotte after 38 days. Lotte also prepared for Choi Won-joon by arranging five left-handed batters, including Han Dong-hee and Park Seung-wook as third baseman. Lotte coach Larry Sutton said, “Han Dong-hee was excluded from the starting lineup because Choi Won-jun’s performance was not good (his career batting average was 0.143), and left-handed hitters showed Choi Won-joon a good performance, so he was hired.”
On this day, Choi Won-joon made a fresh start by inducing a three-way withdrawal against the top batting order of Kim Min-seok, Ko Seung-min, and Jeon Jun-woo in the first inning. After blocking the scoreless run until the second inning, he was driven to the crisis of 1st and 2nd base unscathed in the 3rd inning. He struck out Min-seok Kim, but he threw a fastball in the middle to Seung-min, who went 2 times, and hit a 1-run double that crossed the key to right field. In the 4th inning, he was hit by a solo shot by An Chi-hong and gave up one more point.
Doosan Choi Won-joon throws a ball against Sajik Lotte on the 10th.
Choi Won-joon blocked the Lotte batting line well without conceding until the 6th inning. However, the Doosan lineup also struggled with only two hits to opponent starter Charlie Barnes (28) until the beginning of the 7th inning. Doosan, who missed the decisive chance of 1st and 2nd base unscathed in the 2nd inning, did not even get a chance to do so. Eventually, at the end of the 7th inning, Choi Won-joon was hit with a double by Yoo Gang-nam at the 1st and 2nd base made by Roh Jin-hyeok’s hit and sacrifice bunt, and gave up the 3rd run. In fact, it was the moment when Seunggi passed to Lotte.
Even in a situation where he could feel discouraged, Choi Won-joon finished the 7th inning and handed over the mound to Kim Myung-shin at the end of the 8th inning. On this day, Choi Won-jun recorded 7 hits (1 home run), 1 walk, 6 strikeouts and 3 runs in 7 innings, but the team lost 0-3 and recorded the 3rd loss of the season. He fell into a 7-game losing streak after the match against Samsung in Daegu on September 15 last year.
Of course, the multiplier is not absolute when it comes to evaluating pitchers. This is because he cannot control himself. But even so, failing to win is a situation that can dampen a player’s morale. In the end, batters can help Won-jun Choi to get out of the confines, but he has not yet been able to help.