"Why did you come to Korea?" Only one hit, KKK monster pitch, left-hander Nippert Jae-rim... "Expectations grow" as a pitcher with 28 ML wins
"Why did you come to Korea?" Only one hit, KKK monster pitch, left-hander Nippert Jae-rim... "Expectations grow" as a pitcher with 28 ML wins
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Will Doosan Bears benefit from being a foreign pitcher this year? Col Irvin (31) of the U.S. Major League Baseball has displayed good pitching at exhibition games, raising expectations.
Doosan won the Samsung Lions and the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO exhibition game 8-5 at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on the 10th.
Starting as Doosan's starter on the day, Irvin pitched three innings of one hit, no four outs, no strikeouts, and no run. He threw only 30 pitches against 10 batters, with a maximum speed of 150 kilometers per hour.
Irvin got off to a good start by striking out Kim Seong-yoon, the Samsung leadoff hitter, at the bottom of the first inning. Kim's bat went in vain on a 147-kilometer fastball that came into the middle of the third pitch. He then grounded out Kim Heon-gon at the fourth pitch at the advantageous ball count of 1-2, and struck out Koo at the 1-2 pitch. The fourth pitch he threw against Koo was 150 kilometers long.
Taking the mound in the second inning, Irvin guided leadoff hitter Kang Min-ho to a fly ball to the first base and allowed Jeon to strike out swinging for the fourth time. Irvin allowed a double to the left-center with a 2-0 ball count disadvantage against his successor, Lee Jae-hyun. However, he got out of the game by grounding out Yoon Jeong-bin to the second base.
Irvin continued to display good pitching. In the third inning, he grounded out leadoff hitter Lee Hae-seung to the third base, and struck out Shim Jae-hoon. Shim Jae-hoon's bat was thrown to a 145-km high fastball at the fourth pitch with the ball count 1-2. He then led Kim Seong-yoon to a ground ball in front of the pitcher at the second pitch to end the inning.
Irvin ended his pitching. Ahead of the end of the fourth inning, Irvin finished his pitching on the day by replacing the pitcher with Kim Ho-joon.
Doosan welcomes Irvin's quality pitching. Last season, Doosan did not have any connection with foreign pitchers. Raúl Alcanta, who was expected to take the starting role, left the country with only two wins, two losses and an ERA of 4.76 due to an elbow injury. Brandon Waddell, another foreign pitcher, showed good performance with 7 wins, 4 losses and an ERA of 3.12 in 14 games, but left the team in the first half due to left shoulder injury. He brought in Japanese pitcher Shirakawa as a substitute, but failed to finish the season due to an elbow injury. Jordan Balazovic, who was acquired afterwards, also left Korea without showing any performance.
Jack Rogue of the U.S. and Irvin were the new foreign pitchers Doosan recruited ahead of this season. They signed a total of 1 million U.S. dollars (down payment of 200,000 and annual salary of 800,000 dollars). Irvin, who is 193 centimeters tall and weighs 108 kilograms, is a left-hander who was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth round in the 2016 rookie draft. He then made his big league debut in Philadelphia in 2019.
He is a typical starting pitcher. During his six seasons in the Major League, Irvin pitched in 134 games (93 starts) and 593 innings, marking 28-40 with a 4.54 ERA. He struck out 434. During the last season, he pitched in 29 games (six starts) for the Baltimore Orioles and the Minnesota Twins, recording six wins and six losses with a 5.11 ERA. While pitching in a total of 111 innings, he recorded 78 strikeouts.
"He is a professional starting pitcher who has started 90 games in the Major League in the last four seasons," Doosan said at the time of recruiting Irvin. "Even though he is a left-hander, he has excellent fastballs with speeds of up to 153 kilometers. He also has excellent breaking pitches such as curves, cutters, and changeups. He has compliance with ball control as he has only 2.16 walks per nine innings in the big league."
Ahead of the first exhibition game on the 8th, Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop said of the two foreign pitchers, "They are adapting well. I don't think Irvin is in his right condition yet, but he is doing well in time for the opening on the 22nd," adding, "His current condition is good, but there is something we are looking forward to from Irvin. I think he has played in the 바카라사이트 Major League for a long time. I think he is going well in time for the opening." Will Irvin continue to show good performance after the opening following the next exhibition game? Doosan fans are showing high expectations, saying that he is the second of the left-hander Nippert.