Kirk McCarty (SSG Landers) returns.
McCarty, who first stepped onto the KBO League stage this season, pitched in 24 games and recorded 9 wins, 5 losses, 130 innings, 58 runs (49 earned), 116 strikeouts, an ERA of 3.39, and a WHIP (on-base percentage allowed per inning) of 1.30.
McCarty was out of action twice this season due to injury. He was unable to take the mound for a month due to a forearm injury in late June. He returned to action against the Daegu Samsung Lions on July 26. After that, he was on the mound steadily for nearly two months, but bad news about injury came again at the end of September.
McCarty started as a starter against the Incheon Lotte Giants on September 23. However, he came off the mound after two innings, allowing two hits and striking out four. Oh Won-seok was urgently deployed to guard the mound.
McCarty was not in good condition. Upon examination, he was diagnosed with damage to his right medial oblique muscle. McCarty took a break to get his bearings. That’s how McCarty’s regular season ended.
There is little time left for McCarty to return. He ended up pitching live as he prepared for the semi-playoffs after the regular season ended. He is expected to return on the 20th by pitching in the bullpen.
McCarty, who played as a starting pitcher this season, is scheduled to take the mound as a bullpen pitcher in the semi-playoffs against the NC Dinos. If the team advances to the playoffs, McCarty’s position will be reassigned.
SSG coach Kim Won-hyung met with reporters ahead of the first game of the semi-playoff against NC on the 22nd and said about McCarty, “You have to throw. I think the standard is about 1 inning. I pitched from the bullpen once today,” and “I pitched from the bullpen the day before yesterday.” “I did it again today and inspected it one more time. Starting tomorrow, the bullpen will be on standby as normal,” he said.메이저사이트
Although McCarty played as a starting pitcher this season, he has experience working as a bullpen pitcher on the American stage. He appeared in 13 big league games last season with the Cleveland Guardians, including 11 in relief. Therefore, director Kim Won-hyung decided that there were no adaptation problems.
Coach Kim Won-hyung said, “(For the possibility of being selected for the playoffs), I think I’ll have to see him go out in the game. He’ll have to take the mound and see what kind of performance he gets,” and added, “I have bullpen experience in the U.S., so there’s no problem in adapting. I’ll see how many pitches I throw when I go out in the game.” “I think we’ll have to see. Then we’ll have to think about whether to select him or not,” he said.
SSG will appoint Gwang-Hyun Kim as the starter in the second round of the semi-playoffs to be held on the 23rd. Attention is being paid to whether McCarty will take the mound following Kim Gwang-hyun and, if he does, whether he will show a good performance in his return game.