Recently, LG Jung Woo-young (24) is a player who trains for the longest time. Coach Kim Gwang-sam is always by his side. With the help of coach Kim Kwang-sam, Jung Woo-young is sweating hard to correct the slide step. When the result was not satisfactory, coach Kwang-Sam Kim used a rubber band to hold Jung Woo-Young’s stepping foot on the pitch. After practicing pitching like this, Jung Woo-young sits coach Kim Kwang-sam and tries pitching without a rubber band.
Jung Woo-young, who joined the LG Twins in the 2nd round of 2019 with the 2nd 15th ranking, continued to evolve every year and steadily raised his fastball velocity. He recorded an average velocity of 143.3 km with a two-seam (sinker) fastball in 2019, 144.8 km in 2020, and 146.7 km in 2021, and last year he bulked up and took the highest velocity of 157 km. The average speed of two-seam fastballs in 2022 was 151.5 km. 메이저놀이터
Last year, Jung Woo-young’s sinker was known as a harness that could not be hit. He was a two-pitch pitcher who threw a sinker and slider, but the sinker’s pitch was so good that he didn’t need to throw another pitch. Last year, the sinker rate was a whopping 92.4%, and it was virtually a one-pitch pitcher. Not only did he throw a four-seam fastball, he didn’t throw a single curve ball, changeup, or splitter. He threw only one sinker and played an active role with an average ERA of 2.64 in 67 games (58 innings) last season with 2 wins, 3 losses, and 35 holds, becoming the king of holds.
To that extent, his pitch was overwhelming. But he had a fatal flaw. He had many stolen bases due to his slow slide step to increase velocity, and after consulting with the coaching staff, he went into a slide step modification. After trying to change with coach Kim Kwang-sam, the slide step was shortened to 1.33 to 1.40 seconds in two weeks. After the fix, the stolen base was definitely reduced. However, the problem was the flat pitch due to the decrease in restraint.
Jung Woo-young’s performance this season was 13 games, 3 losses, 6 holds, an average ERA of 4.22, and it is an incredible number that is not the result of last season’s hold king. His on-base percentage (WHIP) per inning is 1.44. He became a local drummer from a sinker who said he couldn’t hit even if he was thrown only in the middle. As if the quick motion correction had an adverse effect, the speed decreased and the hit rate increased.
He recorded a maximum speed of 157 km last year, but this season is only 146 km. The tip of the ball, which seemed to be alive and wriggling, has also become flatter than last year, and the number of hits hit by regular hits has increased.
So, Jung Woo-young is trying to learn how to use a short force in the changed slide step using a rubber band before the game. He has been the type to use force only in large movements, but he is trying to learn how to use force in short bursts.
Jung Woo-young must recover the lost restraint and move as soon as possible. In his current form, it seems daunting to deal with batters.
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