The 2020 KBO Draft produced many good players who will lead the future of the league, such as So Joon So (KT), Yunsik Kim, Lee Min Ho (above LG), Haeyoung Jeong (KIA), Jihoon Choi (SSG), and Junyong Choi (Lotte). done. They are now in their third year, but there are also two players selected for the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) national team.
Sohn Joon Sohn, the ace of the KT Wiz, and Yunsik Kim, the left-hander of the LG Twins, were called by coach Lee Kang-cheol and were named to the WBC national team. So Joon Sohn achieved 10 wins early in the first half of this season, and was evaluated as a part to play the role of right-handed ace in the WBC national team. However, not many people expected Kim Yun-shik to be promoted to the national team.
After his debut, Kim Yun-sik went back and forth between starting and bullpen for two seasons, recording an average of 5.36 ERA with 9 wins, 8 losses and 3 holds. In the first half of this season, he suffered from ups and downs due to his condition without being able to establish a routine. The difference between the good times and the bad times was huge. But he started to change in the second half. Having struggled with elbow and shoulder injuries for the past two years, Kim Yun-sik established a routine of strengthening his lower body without bullpen pitching to maintain his shoulder condition before starting, so he could throw his own ball in every game. 메이저사이트
In the second half, his fastball velocity rose to 146-147km, and the power of his changeup, which sank outside the right-hander, increased. The changeup that fell against right-handers was powerful enough to remind Ryu Hyun-jin. Like Hyun-Jin Ryu, he was able to become the best left-handed pitcher in the second half because the release point was constant when throwing fastballs and changeups. Now, Kim Yun-sik has become a complete pitcher who knows how to throw a clear winning pitch: a slider against left-handed hitters and a changeup against right-handed hitters.
Coach Lee Kang-cheol, who is called a pitching expert, also pointed out the lineage of the left-hander of the national team as the successor after watching Kim Yun-sik’s performance in the second half.
However, in fact, Kim Yun-sik was a player who was almost nominated by KT at the time of the 2020 KBO draft. At the time, LG had the third place nomination right after NC and KT. Most experts predicted that NC would nominate Deoksu High School left pitcher Jeong Gu-beom as the first choice in the first round, and KT would nominate Jinheung High School left-hander Kim Yun-sik as the second choice in the first round. LG expected that, too, and was preparing to appoint Gyeongnam High School infielder Lee Joo-hyung. However, KT nominated Yushingo catcher Kang Hyeon-woo, not Kim Yun-sik, to secure future catcher resources, and LG immediately nominated Kim Yun-shik.
Kim Yun-sik, who wore the LG striped uniform, had the honor of boarding the national team led by KT coach Lee Kang-cheol with the Taegeuk mark for the first time in three years. The relationship between coach Lee Kang-cheol and Kim Yun-sik, who could have met at KT, came to be with the national team.