“I didn’t even ask, but I was training a new pitch. It seems that Barnes is worried about useless things in the world.”
Lotte pitching coach Bae Young-soo is stingy with praise. It is because of the idea that young players should arm themselves with stronger mental power.
Some of them are exceptions. Players who have faithfully prepared are treated appropriately. Barnes, who is entering his second year as a foreign pitcher, is one of them.
Barnes rode a roller coaster last year.
In April, he won five games with a 0.65 earned run average.
As a left-hander, he was good at the three-quanter pitching form and the deception action that comes out of hiding the ball all the way, so Korean batters could not cope with it properly. It literally bombed the league.
Lotte made such Barnes pitch after a 4-day break. It was a measure to force one more game to be played.
However, Barnes did not last long and revealed his limitations.
He saw his earned run average soar to 4.29 in May and barely pass June as well to 4.34. Lotte also stopped playing after Barnes’ 4-day break.
And in September, his final month, his earned run average soared to 7.23. During this period, he won only 1 win (2 losses).
However, Lotte promoted a renewal of the contract with Barnes. This is because Barnes’ sluggishness was judged to be a problem due to the decline in physical strength caused by the turn on the 4th in the first half.
He concluded that if he only manages his stamina, he can achieve double-digit wins with an earned run average of 3 points.
And at the Guam spring camp, Barnes proved that Lotte’s judgment was not wrong.
Coach Bae Young-soo said, “I have prepared really well. I can’t reveal it yet, but I’ve even added a 슬롯사이트new weapon myself. He is also working hard to adapt. He has experienced a lot of foreign players, but he doesn’t seem to have seen a player who moves on his own like Barnes. As long as he manages his stamina well, he seems to be able to perform well this season as well.”
Could it be that Korean hitters have already adapted to Barnes’ unique pitching form? If that’s the case, expectations for Barnes’ season will drop significantly.
However, coach Bae said, “Even if he adapts to his form, he is a pitcher with good pitches, so I think he can overcome it. He’s not a powerful player simply because he throws in unfamiliar form. He is such a good pitcher to have. He believes that he can show good form with a one-two punch with Strayley,” he explained.