Amidst a wild slate of games on Friday morning, the NC Dinos placed star catcher Eui-ji Yang on the injured list after he experienced vertigo. Remember, the KBO does not require a player to spend a certain amount of time on the injury list so Yang can return to action when healthy. For now his backup Tae-goon Kim makes for an intriguing low priced option at catcher going forward. While the major leagues contract minor league teams and players, the KBO also may adjust how it handles its minor league system, the Futures League:
#KBO Exec boards will meet next week to discuss possibly reduce # of minor league games to reduce costs. Each Futures League teams play 96 game sched, but with 0 tickets being sold at all levels, orgs are now looking at ways to save $$$. #KBOLeague
— Daniel Kim ??? ? (@DanielKimW) June 19, 2020
Unlike the major leagues, the KBO teams remain owned by corporations who operate the franchises often with losses rather than profits. Another difference in the culture, there’s no Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers friction in the Kiwoom clubhouse as evidenced in this article:
#KBO story: on Kiwoom Heroes' third-string catcher Joo Hyo-sang, the walk-off hero from Thursday's win. Said Park Dong-won (starting catcher currently out with knee injury) has taken him under his wing, though Joo is essentially trying to steal Park's job.https://t.co/sRYrSytMFU
— Jeeho Yoo (@Jeeho_1) June 19, 2020
Why is something like this important? Well:
#KBO walk-off: Kiwoom Heroes enjoy their 3rd straight walk-off victory, beating SK Wyverns 2-1 in the bottom 9th. Catcher Joo Hyo-sang smacked a two-run hit with one out and bases loaded for his 2nd straight walk-off hit. Those 2 hits are his only 2 hits this season.
— Jeeho Yoo (@Jeeho_1) June 19, 2020
Kiwoom won its third straight contest via a walk-off hit and for the second straight game, it was catcher Hyo-sang Joo. On the other end of the spectrum in this game, the SK Wyverns closer continues to struggle in high leverage. Imagine a team in the MLB providing a closer with this much time in the role after reading this tweet:
#KBO walk-off: Kiwoom Heroes enjoy their 3rd straight walk-off victory, beating SK Wyverns 2-1 in the bottom 9th. Catcher Joo Hyo-sang smacked a two-run hit with one out and bases loaded for his 2nd straight walk-off hit. Those 2 hits are his only 2 hits this season.
— Jeeho Yoo (@Jeeho_1) June 19, 2020
Noting SK fell to 12-27 on the year and suffered its fourth straight loss after finishing tied for first in the regular season last year with Doosan and some changes could be coming for the franchise. Kia’s Kyung-chan Moon notched his ninth save working a clean ninth on nine pitches with a strikeout. He’s recorded 14 straight outings without yielding an earned run (one unearned one total) with a 19:3 K:BB in them highlighting the difference a closer can make. Kia’s won three in a row and five games above five hundred. Keeping all of this in mind, remember the game’s supposed to be fun, right?
Baseball is fun. pic.twitter.com/M4xgz1N9p2
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 19, 2020
In a busy five game slate, here’s the recap of the top performances of the day.
Starting Pitcher Spotlight
Chang-mo Koo moved to 6-0 this season giving up three hits, one earned run and struck out nine over seven innings for the Dinos. Koo’s made eight starts this year, all quality outings yielding one earned run or fewer in each, with a 0.78 ERA, 0.65 WHIP, .134 batting average against while only serving up two home runs over 55 innings. He ranks first in both ratio statistics and second in strikeouts (61). Pretty, pretty good.
Seung-won Moon fired six shutout innings in Kiwoom but did not factor in the decision. He allowed two hits and two walks with four strikeouts in his outing. Over his last four starts, Moon’s recorded a 1.78 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 27:7 K:BB in 25.1 innings for SK.
Opposing Moon in a pitcher’s duel in Kiwoom, Hyun-hee Han logged 7.2 innings yielding seven hits, one earned run and one walk with five strikeouts in a quality start. Han lowered his ERA to 4.31 in the process.
David Buchanan left with a chance to win but his bullpen blew the lead after his departure. Buchanan tossed five innings giving up eight hits, three runs (two earned) and two walks with seven strikeouts. Turning the corner of late, Buchanan’s last five starts spanning 31.2 innings yields a 1.42 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 23:7 K:BB.
Hitter Highlights
Doosan Bears
Rolling to 18 runs on 20 hits against the LG Twins, almost every Bears hitter got involved but here’s the one’s of note with an interesting observation:
The Doosan Bears scored 18 runs and allowed 10 while hitting and allowing zero home runs.
— Justin Choi ???????? (@justinochoi) June 19, 2020
In the MLB, the only game to match/exceed these criteria since 1947 occurred on April 27th, 1980 – A's vs. Twins: https://t.co/kbbu0l8YAp
- Yoo-chan Lee (3B) - Batting leadoff, Lee went 2-for-5 with three runs, an RBI and walked twice.
- Jose Miguel Fernandez (1B) - Finished 2-for-4 with three runs and an RBI.
- Kun-woo Park (OF) - Shifted to third in the lineup, Park responded with two hits, two runs, a double, three RBI and walked.
- Jae-hwan Kim (DH) - Returned to the lineup going 2-for-5 with three runs, three RBI and drew two walks.
- Joo-hwan Choi (2B) - Tallied two hits including a double, scored three runs, drove in three and walked twice.
- Hae-sung Kuk (OF) - Racked up three hits, scored two runs and drove in three.
LG Twins
- Eun-sung Chae (OF) - Recorded two hits in five at-bats with a run and two RBI in a lopsided loss.
- Yong-taik Park (DH) - All-time KBO hits leader Park reeled off four more in five at-bats scoring two runs, doubled and drove in two.
- Ji-hwan Oh (SS) - Stayed hot going 1-for-3 with two runs, an RBI and walked. He’s nine for his last 19 (.474) with seven runs, two doubles and four RBI.
KT Wiz
- Jeong-dae Bae (OF) - Went 2-for-6 with a run, his second home run and two RBI atop the Wiz lineup.
- Mel Rojas Jr. (OF) - Launched his 13th home run among three hits moving into a tie for the KBO lead. Rojas ranks tied for first in home runs, second in RBI (38), first in runs (34) and third in average (.384).
- Baek-ho Kang (1B) - Finished 1-for-3 with a run, double, RBI and walked.
- Sung-woo Jang (C) - Tallied three hits in five at-bats with a run and an RBI.
- Woo-jin Sm (SS) - Perhaps busting out of his recent slump, Sim went 2-for-3 with a double, his first home run, scored two runs, drove in one and walked while batting ninth.
Lotte Giants
- Ah-seop Son (OF) - Racked up three doubles in six at-bats with a run scored in the Giants loss.
- Jun-woo Jeon (OF) - Hit his eighth home run driving in three while going 3-for-6 on Friday.
- Dae-Ho Lee (1B) - Blasted his seventh home run among his two hits in six at-bats with an RBI.
- Dixon Machado (SS) - Another multiple hit game going 2-for-5 with a run.
- Dang-hee Lee (3B) - Made his only hit count hitting a three-run home run and walked in five plate appearances.
Kia Tigers
- Preston Tucker (OF) - Extended his hit streak to nine in style going 4-for-4 with a double, his 11th home runs and drove in three runs remaining first in the league in RBI (40). He missed a cycle by a triple but could be heating up once again, especially if his leg’s back to full strength.
- Joo-whan Na (3B) - Blasted his third home run of the season driving in three. Also walked in five plate appearances.
NC Dinos
- Jin-sung Kang (1B) - Cracked his ninth home run going 1-for-4 with two RBI.
- Sung-bum Na (OF) - Recorded two hits in four at-bats with a run and a double.
Hanwha Eagles
- JIn-haeng Choi (DH) - Provided the Eagles with their only run on a solo home run, his third this season and first since his recall on Thursday.
On a slate riddled with runs and walk-off wins in high leverage moments, here’s the updated standings:
?June 19th? Game scores for today!
— KBO (@KBOleague) June 19, 2020
? Check out the latest KBO standings ????#KBO #KBOLeague #scores #standings pic.twitter.com/af9mjmAUTT
Hanwha sends its ace to the mound in Warwick Saupold hoping to tie the series against the NC Dinos while Carson Kelly tries to depress the surging Doosan offense. Keep tabs on how Adrian Sampson (Lotte) and Tae-in Won (Samsung) fare in their outings on the road on Saturday along with seeing if Ki-young Im continues his recent success for Kia.
Stay ahead of the competition across all fantasy formats with Fantasy Alarm and be well.
Statistical Credits:
myKBOstats.com
Eng.koreabaseball.com
Player News
Phillies INF prospect Otto Kemp went 2-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run for Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Sunday.
Kemp now has seven home runs on the season and is hitting .313 with a 1.072 OPS. More importantly, he has played games at 2B, 3B, LF, and 1B for Lehigh Valley this season, which means the Phillies could eventually call him up as a super utility player. His primary position is third base, so he could be an option there if Alec Bohm continues to struggle, but Kemp his 16 home runs and stole 20 bases in the minors last year, so there is some power and speed here if he ever gets a shot.
Cardinals RHP prospect Michael McGreevy allowed three runs on four hits in 3 2/3 innings for Triple-A Memphis on Sunday.
McGreevy struck out four and walked three on the day and is now sporting a 4.08 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, and 25/7 K/BB ratio in 28 2/3 innings this season. The right-hander almost won a rotation spot out of spring training, and the Cardinals’ starting pitching has really struggled of late, so there is a window for him to push his way into the big league rotation. However, he’s going to have to pitch a little better to force St. Louis’ hand.
White Sox 1B prospect Tim Elko went 2-for-5 with a walk, two home runs, four RBI, and three runs scored for Triple-A Charlotte on Sunday.
The White Sox’s hulking first base prospect now has nine home runs and 20 RBI on the season while slashing .354/.432/.732 in 23 games at Triple-A. He’s also sporting a 28 percent strikeout rate and has always had strikeout rates around 30 percent in the minors, which likely means he will struggle to hit for a good average at the big league level. That said, the 26-year-old is a career .292 hitter in the minors and probably deserves a shot at some big league at-bats soon.
Cubs 3B prospect Matt Shaw went 2-for-5 with a double and a home run for Triple-A Iowa on Sunday.
Shaw has gotten off to a slow start at Iowa, hitting just 5-for-26 in his first seven games. However, he has five walks and just one strikeout, and will most likely quickly show that he is too talented to remain at that level for long. It may just take another few weeks before that works itself out, which makes him hard to stash in most league types.
The Athletic’s Chandler Rome reports that "[Chas] McCormick’s spot on the major-league roster has never felt more tenuous.”
The 30-year-old McCormick is slashing .318/.423/.364 on the season but has been limited to just 29 plate appearances, and the Astros have also said that Cam Smith will start taking fly balls in centerfield. As Rome points out, “The entire premise of carrying McCormick centered on his ability to back up Jake Meyers in center field and serve as a late-game defensive replacement for Smith or Altuve in the corners.” If the Astros don’t need McCormick as a late-game defensive replacement and Zach Dezenzo begins to show more offensive promise, there is little need for McCormick on the roster. Rome adds, “The act of exposing Smith to center field accentuates how far McCormick has fallen in the organizational hierarchy. That he has taken 19 plate appearances since April 3 — and sacrifice-bunted during two of them — further demonstrates his standing.”
The Athletic’s Chandler Rome reports that the chances of Hunter Brown agreeing to a contract extension with Houston as “narrow, if not nonexistent.”
That’s not to say that Brown is leaving the Astros, but Rome believes it’s a near certainty that Brown will test the free agent market and try to command a big payday. Something we probably could have pieced together when he changed his agent and hired Scott Boras. According to Rome, “Brown was interested in an extension last spring, but talks with Houston’s front office never materialized into anything substantial.” At the time, Brown had a 4.60 ERA across 176 MLB innings, so it’s understandable that the Astros were uncertain, but they’re probably kicking themselves now.