Pitcher Lim Ki-young, who has kept the KIA Tigers’ starting rotation for the past few years, has transformed into an ‘all-weather bullpen’ this season. The situation of playing in the bullpen rather than starting can be dissatisfied with the pitcher. However, Lim Ki-young saw his bullpen transformation as an opportunity to increase his value.메이저사이트

This positive gaze made Lim Ki-young’s adaptation to the bullpen smooth. Lim Ki-young pitched in 12 games (22.2 innings) this season and recorded good results with 1 save, 1 hold, ERA of 3.97, 13 strikeouts, 5 walks, and a WHIP of 1.01. Lim Ki-young played not only the long relief role, but also the pursuit team, and even the role of Pilseungjo in a situation ahead.

Standing under the mound, he even takes on the role of pitching team leader. Regarding his teammates, Ki-young Lim said, “You have to become more shameless and get angry when you get angry,” and ordered them to have a stronger mentality. He is a spell that came from the heart of wanting the team to become stronger. MK Sports directly heard the story of Lim Ki-young, who successfully transformed into an all-weather bullpen this season.

It must be unfamiliar to him to play a bullpen role after playing a full-time starting role in recent years.

It’s hard and fun, but so far it’s okay. I thought that if I showed that I can be a starter and a bullpen as well as a bullpen pitcher at the end of last year, I would be more valued. So I didn’t feel too bad about starting this season with the bullpen. Similar to the starting role, I prepared well for the season.

If you go to the bullpen, your routine will inevitably change.

Since the starting day is fixed, you can prepare according to that day. However, the bullpen has to be on standby every day, and pitching conditions are different every day. It was hard to get used to at first, but now it’s a lot better. Before the game, I tried to control my catch by reducing the number of balls as much as possible. Fortunately, my arm is on the fast side. If the starting pitcher’s condition is not good, I prepare my mind quickly (laughs).

So far, the record itself is 1 hold and 1 save, and the 1 save record is especially noticeable. (Lim Ki-young took the mound in the save situation in the 9th inning against LG in Jamsil on April 30 and ended the game) I

never thought that I would go out in a save situation. (Jung) Even when Hae-young went up in the 8th inning, he thought that he would not go out unless he collapsed completely. From the time Haeyoung warmed up, he didn’t have much confidence, so I joked with him, saying, ‘Let’s laugh, Haeyoung.’ In the end, I took the mound in a save situation, and I just thought it was good to be of some help to the team.

I have to take on various roles, so my pitching approach must be different.

For example, in the previous mound, (Lee) Eui-ri came down from the starting mound relatively early and had to digest long innings, so he focused on aggressive pitches that reduced the number of pitches. Conversely, when he only has to take on one inning, he tends to pitch carefully in the direction of completely blocking that inning. It seems to vary greatly depending on the situation in which you go up every day.

According to coach Kim Jong-guk, he may be given a chance to step on the starting mound again someday.

He hasn’t been told to prepare for a start yet, so he continues to prepare for the game by adapting to the bullpen role. Even if he gets on the starting mound, it won’t be easy to handle as many pitches and innings this season as he did before. He will always be prepared to faithfully fulfill the required role on the bench.

How old are you in the pitching tank now?

(Yang) Hyeonjong hyung is the best, followed by (Kim) Daeyu hyung and (Lee) Junyeong hyung. In a way, it’s right in the middle. My juniors are also relatively young, so there are many times when I give them advice or play with them. And when I feel like I’m not, I tend to get angry properly. But the juniors are so nice, so I’m going to get rid of it again.

Is it good to ride?

When I play baseball, sometimes I think I need to know how to get angry when I have to be impudent or angry. If you’re too kind, it’s actually negative when playing baseball. Rather than being angry at something, I would say that tears go well together. Of course, it is best to mix the two opposite elements well in the middle, but it seems that there are many friends who do not find it easy.

Finishing pitcher Jeong Hae-yeong also needs to be a little stronger, just like he said.

It feels like (Jeong) Hae-yeong lost a lot of confidence because things didn’t go her way. Even in the game against LG, I jokingly said, ‘If you go up and put a runner down, I’ll block you, so let’s throw your ball properly’, but he really came down (laughs). Still, I had something promised, so I somehow blocked it, but Hae-young must have a lot of things in his head in his own way. Still, he seems to be getting better lately, and Hyeon-jong and his brother are practicing a lot, so I believe he will get better in the future as a closer.

Im Ki-young is curious about what number he wants to value this season. At this rate, the season inning digestion pace is 102 innings.

First of all, I want to try at least 10 records in the three categories of wins, holds, and saves. I also want to play as many innings as possible in the bullpen. I want to throw close to 100 innings, but I can’t beat senior Kwon Hyuk’s record (112 innings) (laughs). I want to throw as many balls as possible and play as many innings.

At the beginning of this season, the team went through a lot of ups and downs. What message do you want to give to KIA fans?

Isn’t it still early in the season? We believe that once our team gets into the mood, it can rise again at any time. Each player has ups and downs and the times when their condition improves are different, so if you wait a little longer, I think I can repay the KIA fans with better results. Thank you for always supporting us and I hope to meet our fans again at the fall baseball stage at the end of this season.