“I will make the curve and changeup my pitches. Until last year, I threw a little bit, but if I thought I couldn’t control it, I didn’t throw it. I will throw it this year.”
The promise at the spring camp was carried over to the demonstration game. On the 19th, resignation against Lotte. From the first inning, he fell into the bases loaded crisis and gave up runs, but he consistently threw the 3rd and 4th pitches. The changeup was the opposite pitch, and the curve deviated greatly below the zone, wasting pitches, 안전놀이터 but did not lose patience. From the second inning, he started to put the two pitches where he wanted and finished the mission without giving up any additional runs. This is the story of LG starting pitcher Lee Min-ho (22), who is entering his fourth season.
An exhibition match is a process rather than a result. It is a stage to test the parts that have been polished from the off-season to camp, not just looking at victory. This is especially true for Lee Min-ho. The command tower guaranteed a spot in the starting lineup early on. In other words, good pitching in the regular season is needed rather than good pitching in demonstration games. He won 12 wins last year, but suffered from extreme ups and downs. In the 12 games won, the average ERA was 1.35, and in the remaining 14 games, the average ERA was 10.77. It was the first time in the 2022 season that he succeeded in winning double digits, but faced limitations rather than joy.
The task was clear. It is to get out of the simple pitching pattern. The percentage of fastballs and sliders was 88.7% in the first year, 86.8% in the second year, and 82.9% in the third year. Little by little, they tried to break away from Two Peach, but they did not succeed. At the same time, for hitters, Lee Min-ho has established himself as a pitcher who only needs to keep quick timing in his head. Hitters who were embarrassed by his mid-140km fastball and high-speed slider that reached 140km when they first met also adapted to Lee Min-ho.
I realized that if I don’t change, I can’t grow. So, from the offseason to camp, I diligently polished my curveball and changeup. Last month at a camp in Arizona, USA, Lee Min-ho said, “Now you have to be able to throw the third and fourth pitches consistently. I will make my curveball and changeup my pitches. I threw a little until last year, but if I felt like I couldn’t control my pitch, I didn’t throw it. I will throw it this year,” he raised his voice.
As promised, the proportion of curveballs and changeups has increased significantly. He used a lot of curves and changeups from the first demonstration match against Changwon NC on the 13th. In the second demonstration match against Lotte, 14 curves and 14 changeups out of a total of 58 pitches were thrown. He threw more curveballs and changeups than 13 sliders, and the combined ratio of curveballs and changeups was 48.2%.
He recorded an ERA of 6.00 in two demonstration games. You don’t have to give it meaning. The key is the regular season. If he can maintain the weight of the curve and changeup like he did against Lotte, batters will face Lee Min-ho embarrassingly again. It could also drop the unwelcome upswing of his 2020 ERA of 3.60, 2021 ERA of 4.30, and 2022 ERA of 5.51.