(By Yoon-seo Park, Sports Illustrated) Can KIA Tigers’ “super rookie” Yoon Young-chul (19) continue his home dominance?
KIA will play a home game against SSG Landers of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League on April 6 at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field. The team has a narrow 2-3 record against them this season.
Starting on the mound will be Yoon Young-cheol. In his debut season this year, Yoon has made eight appearances, posting a 3-1 record with a 2.95 ERA in 39⅔ innings pitched. He’s faced SSG once and had a solid outing, allowing three runs on six hits with one walk and five strikeouts in five innings.
Yoon has been on a steep rise. In five games in May, he went 3-0 with a 2.03 ERA. In addition, he pitched five or more innings in six straight games and held opponents to one run in three straight starts.
There are encouraging numbers as well. Yoon has been strong at home. In five home games, he posted a 2.55 ERA. On the road, he has a 3.60 ERA in three games, but his gutsy pitching has been even more impressive on his familiar home mound.
In their last meeting, Yoon was hit by a multi-hit double by Han Yu-seom and an RBI single by Kim Sung-hyun. He also gave up one hit each to 안전놀이터 Choo Shin-soo, Kim Kang-min, and Park Sung-hyun. However, Choo Shin-soo and Kim Kang-min are currently out of the first team roster. Choi Jeong-jeong, the “center of the offense,” went 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
Kia turned things around with a 6-0 sweep of the Lotte Giants on April 4. They snapped out of a two-game losing streak and are well on their way to a five-game winning streak (23-24). Looking to get back on track, KIA is pinning its hopes on starter Yoon Young-cheol. Yoon is showing signs of life beyond his rookie year and has the most pace in the lineup. This is KIA’s chance to make it two in a row and improve their chances of winning the series.
Yoon failed to give his team a win (3-5) in the last SSG. Setting his claws for revenge. Let’s keep an eye on Yoon Young-cheol’s performance to see if the Baby Tigers can roar on the mound again.
