유지호
| 2021-05-25 14:04:33
pitcher-MLB
Cardinals' Kim Kwang-hyun disappointed with inability to go deep into game
By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, May 25 (Yonhap) -- Seven starts into his second season in the majors, St. Louis Cardinals' South Korean starter Kim Kwang-hyun is still searching for an answer, something that can help him get through the sixth inning for a change.
The left-hander came within an out of completing six innings, when he faced the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago on Monday (local time). Instead, with the Cardinals up 1-0, Kim served up a two-out, two-run home run to Andrew Vaughn, and then walked Leury Garcia before getting pulled from the mound.
Kim was charged with three runs on five hits and three walks in 5 2/3 innings of a 5-1 loss. He's now 1-2 with a 3.09 ERA.
"I am disappointed that I couldn't finish that sixth inning," Kim said in his postgame Zoom interview. "I didn't like the way I finished the day with a home run and a walk. I'll try to go deeper into the game next time."
It's the mantra he has repeated over and over again this year. The 5 2/3 innings he threw in Chicago matched his season high, while the 104 pitches were the most he's thrown in the majors.
Before Vaughn's at-bat, Kim got a visit from his manager, Mike Shildt. With reliever Daniel Ponce de Leon warmed up and ready to come out of the bullpen, Shildt appeared on the verge of yanking Kim from the game right then and there.
Kim stayed in the game, but he fell behind 2-0 in the count before leaving a 77.6 mph changeup over the plate that Vaughn hammered for a go-ahead two-run blast.
Kim said so much was going on in that inning that he didn't even remember how the conference on the mound went. He only remembered Shildt asking him if he had enough left in the tank.
Stamina wasn't the issue, but Kim's control was. He walked Garcia on five pitches and that spelled the end of his day.
The White Sox came in with the best record in the American League (AL) Central and stayed 1.5 games ahead of the Cleveland Indians for the top spot at 27-19. The White Sox also have the best run differential in the AL with plus-68.
"It was my first time facing these White Sox hitters, and I could see why they were in first place in their division," Kim conceded. "With so many right-handed hitters today (five plus three switch hitters in the starting lineup), I wanted to mix in changeups and sliders."
He wanted to do precisely that against Vaughn.
"He got a double off my slider in the second inning, and I wanted to throw him a changeup (in the sixth inning)," Kim said. "I just left it over the middle of the plate. I have to learn from this mistake and try to do better in the next game."
One positive note for Kim was the effectiveness of his curveball. He threw 16 of them, or 15 percent of the time, well above his season average of a 9.7 percent usage rate. He induced seven swings and four of them missed, and a few slow benders -- he averaged only 68.7 mph with the pitch -- left White Sox hitters baffled.
(END)
[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]