LG Twins Lim Chan-gyu, who had a question mark before the season, is now clearly gaining the trust of the commanding tower. Coach Yeom Gyeong-yeop also made up his mind to give the team another chance.
Lim Chan-gyu took the mound as a starting pitcher in the 4th game of the season against SSG Landers in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League held at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 23rd, recording 6 innings, 3 hits (1 home run), 1 walk, 3 strikeouts and 1 run. He led the team to a 9-1 victory without being shaken even after giving up the first point. Lim Chan-gyu, who earned his 4th win of the season, dropped his season ERA from 2.48 to 2.33.
Lim Chan-gyu스포츠토토 found stability from the 3rd inning after giving the preemptive solo shot to Choi Joo-hwan at the end of the 2nd inning, and was responsible for the mound until the 6th inning. In particular, in the bottom of the 6th inning, he struck out Guillermo Heredia with a miss swing in a crisis with 2 out on 1st and 3 base, breaking SSG’s will to pursue.
LG coach Yeom Kyung-yeop said on the 24th ahead of the SSG match, “I decided to use Lim Chan-gyu as the third starter until the end of the season.” Got it. My thoughts have changed, and the game management and pitching design have also changed.
He continued, “The first thing I always told Lim Chan-gyu was that it was broken because of the speed limit, and that I had to erase the speed limit from my head. As the game went well, the parts we communicated with each other matched well, and trust in each other grew as things worked out in a good way throughout the season. Most of all, Lim Chan-gyu worked well,” he added.
What is the driving force of Lim Chan-kyu in the eyes of director Yeom Gyeong-yeop? It was ‘Curve’.
Manager Yeom said, “The thing that Lim Chan-gyu likes is that he uses a lot of curveballs and changeups. It’s difficult when Lim Chan-gyu doesn’t use a lot of curveballs. I live, and in the game on the 23rd, I increased the ratio of curves from the 3rd inning. I have to mix a lot of curves from the 1st inning.”
He continued, “The game is much easier on the day when the curve is controlled, and on the day when it is not, the count is at a disadvantage, so it will be difficult.” The increased speed does not easily fall, and there is a high probability that the balance will come out steadily, so I think there is a high probability that the average velocity will increase by about 2 km.
Coach Yeom Gyeong-yeop hoped that Lim Chan-gyu would achieve double-digit wins.
Manager Yeom said, “I think we’ll have more than 10 wins. I’m confident about the pace right now, so I think I can get 13 wins if I keep going around the rotation.”
