“Won-tae Choi (LG Twins) has a good day when the ball is high, and a perfect day when it’s low.”안전놀이터
LG manager Yoon Kyung-yeop has some advice for Won-tae Choi, who is facing his hometown team for the first time.
Choi Won-tae will take the mound as the starting pitcher for the 2023 KBO Baseball League home game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Wednesday.
The right-hander joined the Heroes with the first pick in the 2015 draft and has since compiled a career record of 67-49 with a 4.28 ERA in eight seasons, including three straight years of double-digit wins from 2017-2019, and is currently 7-5 with a 3.41 ERA in 19 appearances (113.1 innings) this season.
LG, which is challenging for the “Grand Prix” this year, acquired him in a trade on March 29 in exchange for utility man Lee Joo-hyung, pitcher Kim Dong-gyu, and a first-round pick in the 2024 rookie draft. Choi Won-tae will be facing his hometown team Kiwoom for the first time today.
“I think (Choi Won-tae) will become a ritual (for his hometown team),” said manager Yoon Kyung-yeop before the game against Kiwoom on Wednesday. “I didn’t use him last time (in the three-game series against Jamsil Kiwoom from 1-3) because I don’t think it’s polite to put him in the starting lineup right away when you’re first traded.”
Choi Won-tae pitched well against the Doosan Bears in Jamsil on July 30, his first start after the trade, with six scoreless innings, but he struggled against the Daegu Samsung Lions on July 5, his last start before this game, with six runs in five innings.
Yoon said, “There are only two things about Choi Won-tae. When the ball is high, he gets hit a little bit, and when it’s low, he throws it perfectly.” “That’s the type of pitch he has. Except for his four-seam fastball, his two-seam fastball, changeup, and slider all have to come in low.”
“When (Choi’s) pitches get higher, they get hit by hitters and have less movement. On the other hand, when the pitch is lower, it has more movement and it’s harder for hitters to hit the ball.”
Meanwhile, when asked about Choi Won-tae, Kiwoom coach Hong Won-ki smiled bitterly and said, “I hope he finishes the season healthy and injury-free.”