SEOUL– With his club having dropped the first two games of the South Korean baseball championship series, Doosan Bears’ manager Kim Tae-hyoung thinks competing in high stakes games has taken its toll on his players.
The Bears are playing in a record seventh consecutive Korean Series, but they find themselves in a 2-0 hole against the KT Wiz, a first-time Korean Series participant.
While the Bears have far more experience than the Wiz on this stage, they also have young players and veterans competing in their first Korean Series. At a press conference prior to Game 3 on Wednesday, Kim suspected those first-timers are overwhelmed under the spotlight.
“I don’t think they’re physically tired, but I think it’s more of a psychological thing,” Kim said at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. “We have a few players who haven’t been here before. We’ve been playing catchup every game and that’s never easy.”
Then with his typically sardonic sense of humor, Kim added with a smile, “Maybe they didn’t prepare themselves mentally because they didn’t think they’d get this far in the postseason.”
One struggling player with no prior Korean Series experience is first baseman Yang Suk-hwan, who is 0-for-7 with six strikeouts after two games.
Kim said no one can help slumping players but themselves.
“In a postseason series, slumping players can be targeted (by pitchers) and some are more sensitive to that kind of pressure than others,” Kim said. “But that’s part of the game. And it’s not as though I’ll replace (Yang) with a backup who hasn’t played this series yet. He has to break out of this somehow.”
While Yang has to find his stroke at the plate, the Bears’ Game 3 starter Ariel Miranda will have to prove his recent shoulder ailment is fully behind him.
The left-hander will be making his first appearance since Oct. 24. He’d been sidelined with shoulder fatigue but pronounced himself fully healthy after bullpen sessions on Sunday. Kim wasn’t so sure.
“Pitching in the bullpen and doing so in a real game are different. We don’t know if he really is 100 percent or if he is just pushing himself,” Kim said. “We don’t have a set pitch count on him, but we’ll have to monitor his condition each inning.”
The Wiz manager Lee Kang-chul wasn’t stressing about lineup changes or bullpen usage. It has been mostly smooth sailing so far, and when it comes to his position players, Lee believes tight defense has translated into strong performances at the plate.
Lee singled out shortstop Shim Woo-jun, who has batted 3-for-6 with two runs scored and played flawless defense — this after batting 0-for-8 and committing three errors in a four-game loss to the Bears in last year’s postseason.
“He has been excellent on both ends, and I think Woo-jun is just figuring out what kind of player he can be,” Lee said. “I think he’ll be an even better shortstop next year.”
First baseman Kang Baek-ho has always been a great hitter, but he’s taken that to a new level so far. He has not been retired yet, having reached safely eight straight times with five hits and three walks. He has also been involved in some key double plays, and even turned a rare 3-6-3 twin killing in Game 2.
“He had some shaky moments on the field in October, but he has looked so much better this series,” Lee said. “He is one player whose defense has led to great offense.”
Source: Yonhap News Agency