Doosan, ranked 5th in the regular season and entering the wild card match, is on the brink of a cliffhanger
Reporter Han Nam-jik = Doosan Bears coach Seung-yeop Lee (47) did not lose his smile even when he had to leave the fall stage in case of a draw or loss.
He was starting his first postseason as head coach on the brink, but he wanted to shoulder the burden alone.
Coach Lee Seung-yeop, who met at Changwon NC Park on the 19th, which opens the 2023 Korean Professional Baseball Postseason, said, “It is not much different from the regular season. However, I feel a sense of caution that if we lose today, it will be the end.”
Doosan, which finished the regular season in 5th place, will advance to the semi-playoffs if it loses or draws with 4th place NC Dinos, who started the wild card match with ‘one win’.
In the wild card match introduced by the KBO in 2015, 5th place has never surpassed 4th place.
Although the situation is unfavorable, Doosan is holding out hope for its first-ever upset in the KBO wild card game by finishing the regular season by sparing certain starting cards, Kwak Bin and Brandon Waddell.
Coach Lee Seung-yeop responded cautiously, saying, “There are predictions that Doosan may defeat NC and advance to the semi-PO,” and cautiously replied, “That’s just a prediction,” but added, “I don’t feel bad about that kind of evaluation.”
On this day, Doosan had Su-bin Jeong (center fielder) – Jae-ho Kim (shortstop) – Jose Rojas (designated hitter) – Eui-ji Yang (catcher) – Seok-hwan Yang (first baseman) – Seung-ho Kang (second baseman) – In-tae Kim (left fielder) – Gyeong-min Heo (third baseman) – The starting line-up was made with Cho Su-haeng (right fielder).
NC starting lineup is Son Ah-seop (designated hitter)∼Park Min-woo (second baseman)∼Park Geon-woo (right fielder)∼Jason Martin (center fielder)∼Kwon Hee-dong (left fielder)∼Kim Joo-won (shortstop)∼Seo Ho-cheol (third baseman)∼Kim Hyeong-jun (catcher)∼ Do Tae-hoon (first baseman) is in that order.
Coach Lee Seung-yeop explained the reason for placing Kim Jae-hwan on the bench, saying, “(Left-handed slugger) Kim Jae-hwan was sidelined at the end of the regular season due to a palm injury. The condition of his palm has improved, but his sense of the game has decreased.”
He also revealed the reason for hiring shortstop Kim Jae-ho, saying, “In big games, shortstop defense is very important.”
Coach Seung-Yeop Lee dreams of advancing the wild card game to the second game with a win in the first game and winning the game with Brandon.
Manager Lee said, “I have no intention of using Brandon in Game 1. If starting pitcher Kwak Bin blocks well until the 5th inning, we have a bullpen that will take responsibility behind him, including Lee Young-ha, Kim Myung-shin, Park Chi-guk, Hong Geon-hee, and Jeong Cheol-won.” He predicted, “Since he has joined the bullpen, I think there is a chance of victory today if Kwak Bin holds up well.”
Doosan fought fiercely for third place, but ended the regular season in fifth place.
I also had to endure the inconvenience of having to find accommodation in Daegu for the Asian Shooting Championships, which opened in Changwon on the 22nd.
Not only the players but also coach Lee Seung-yeop felt disappointed. However, Coach Lee consoled the players with a bright expression throughout training.메이저놀이터
Coach Lee said, “I want to help our players play brightly. I played when I was active, but now I am in a position where I have to give courage to the players and deliver a positive message.” “I hope I can show off all my abilities.”