Will he be able to perform as well as Luchinski, who reigned as the ace of the NC Dinos? Expectations are rising for NC’s new foreign pitcher Taylor Widener (29), who competed for the 5th starting pitcher in the major leagues. He showed his open attitude by saying he would learn Korean culture as well.
NC Dinos filled the last puzzle of foreign players from 10 KBO league teams. On the 31st, the NC club officially announced that it had signed a contract with new foreign pitcher Taylor Widener.
Regarding the terms of the contract, NC added, “A down payment of $145,000, an annual salary of $598,000, and a total of $743,000.”
Widener is a graduate of the University of South Carolina, USA. He was selected by the New York Yankees in the 12th round of the 2016 draft. He has played for Arizona since 2018.
He made his big league debut in 2020. His career major league record is 2 wins, 3 losses, 4 holds, and an earned run average of 4.26 in 49 games. He had 101 hits (21 home runs), 56 runs (51 earned), 54 walks, and 109 strikeouts in 107⅔ innings, posting a batting average of 0.242 and a WHIP (on-base percentage allowed per inning) of 1.44. Last year, he participated in 14 games and posted an average ERA of 3.63 (17⅓ innings) with 1 loss and 1 hold without a win. He had a tendency to drive the ball, so he had a lot of home runs.
In the minor leagues, he started in 80 out of 119 games while playing from 2016, going 23-26 with 5 holds and 4 saves and an ERA of 4.31. He had 394 hits (51 home runs), 155 walks, 536 strikeouts, and a 0.237 batting average in 443 innings pitched. WHIP is 1.24.
After signing the contract, Widener said through the club, “I am very grateful to have joined the NC Dinos. I will do my best in my role for the Dinos to win again. I look forward to the day I play in front of the Dinos fans.” revealed메이저사이트
Regarding preparation for this off-season, he said, “I practiced pitching 5 to 6 times a week, and recently started pitching on the mound. I also trained with weights 3-4 times a week.”
He also showed a positive mind when asked about Korea. Regarding Korea, he said, “I am new to everything about Korea,” and emphasized, “But me and my family are very interested in Korean culture. We are ready to learn.”
Finally, Widener said about his goal, “I want to bring victory to the team every time I play,” saying, “I want to play every starting rotation without skipping.”
Widener is a right-handed overhand pitcher with a height of 183 cm and a weight of 92 kg. He basically has a fast ball. NC explained, “I mainly use a fastball with an average of 150 km (up to 155 km), a slider, and a changeup, and throw a mix of curves.”
He continued, “Widener, who is considered to be excellent in pitching, competed for 5 starts in his team until just before last season.”
The club also has high expectations for him. Lim Seon-nam, general manager of the NC Dinos, said, “I am satisfied with being able to reinforce good resources in the foreign player recruitment market, which has been experiencing difficulties recently. With Widener joining, I think we will be able to build a strong starting lineup with Pedy and Koo Chang-mo.” revealed
General manager Lim said of Widener, “He is a pitcher with good control and excellent pitches.” “Especially, his four-seam fastball is powerful. His style, which is opposite to Pedi, who leads the game with a two-seam fastball, means that the starting lineup can be composed in various ways.” I thought of it as an advantage,” he said.