KIA seemed relieved when a rain-free game was declared just before the start of the second inning against Kiwoom in Gwangju on the 29th of last month. Three wins, six losses, and one draw in the previous 10 games, and even that day, Shawn Anderson hit Kiwoom’s batters intensively in the first inning and gave up four points, starting to be dragged away.
Ando also briefly felt a realistic sense of crisis. 9 consecutive away games against leading LG, No. 2 SSG, and No. 1 KT in the Seoul metropolitan area.
In this situation, the league’s second round and nine consecutive away games against the best-performing team at the time. For KIA, it was natural that the future was dark. But with the start of July, there was a major turnaround. He won 6 wins and 1 loss except for the match against 메이저사이트 주소 Incheon SSG on the 4th, which was canceled due to monsoon rains among the eight games. He even won all five games this week.
The cancellation of the game on the 4th seems to have become a turning point, but in fact, the front desk was already preparing for a turnaround. KIA decided to replace both Anderson and Medina if possible and moved early. He first exchanged communication with Mario Sanchez, who was conquering the Taiwanese league, and Thomas Panoni seems to have contacted him when he was assigned to the Milwaukee Brewers to draw a contract. In other words, it was worthwhile that Shim Jae-hak, the head of the team, recently went on a business trip to the U.S.
This is not the end. Samsung manager Park Jin-man, who was at the bottom, did not miss the fact that he tried to trade KIA manager Kim Jong-kook first. He communicated with Kim Tae-gun’s trade on the spot, and Shim signed an OK sign in the U.S. The catcher trade with Samsung, which has lasted nearly a year since his former general manager, has finally paid off.
KIA announced the recruitment of three people at once on the 5th to 6th. And from that point on, the team began to gain momentum. The effect of Kim Tae-gun was clear in the recent five-game winning streak. As Kim Sun-bin also returned, the lower batting line became stronger, and the team gained vitality by creating synergy with existing return resources such as Na Sung-bum, Choi Won-joon and Kim Do-young. In addition, Kim Tae-gun quickly identified the characteristics of the pitchers and created a customized pitch design. On top of that, Mario Sanchez, who made his debut against Suwon KT on the 8th, hit the jackpot with 10 strikeouts and one run in 6.1 innings, making the climax.
As a result, the front desk created an atmosphere to fight, and as he turned his mind on the field, he finished nine consecutive away games with six wins and two losses, which was more than expected. The ranking has already soared to sixth place, surpassing eighth and seventh places. It doesn’t mean much to line up in the middle at this point anyway. KIA will also have a time when the pitching and hitting cycle will fall again.
However, it seems clear that the team’s basic physical strength has strengthened due to the full replacement of two foreign pitchers and the recruitment of Kim Tae-gun. KIA’s biggest harvest is more than six wins in nine consecutive games in the Seoul metropolitan area, confirming its hope in the second half and recharging its confidence. It completely shook off the sense of defeat in June, and positive vibrations began to circulate in the dugout and on the ground.