Doosan Bears’ Jordan Balazovic (26) earned his first win of the season.
In the home game against KIA Tigers held at Gwangju Kia Champions Field on the 1st, Balazovic recorded 6⅔ innings, 4 hits, 4 walks, 3 strikeouts, 5 strikeouts, and no runs.
This is his third game of the season. Balazovic, who made his debut against Samsung Lions on the 14th of last month, recorded 4⅔ innings, 1 hit, 4 walks, 6 strikeouts, and 1 run. He pitched against LG Twins on the 20th, but in the rain-out game against SSG Landers on the 26th, he gave up 4 runs in 6 innings, but was the losing pitcher due to lack of help from the batting line.
A head-to-head match against the leader KIA. Balazovic blocked KIA’s batting line with a mix of fastballs with a top speed of 156 km/h, curves (18), sliders (17), and forks (16).
Balazovic, who finished the first inning with a good mood by striking out two batters after one out in the bottom of the first, gave up a hit to Na Sung-beom in the bottom of the second, but ended the inning by inducing a double play from Byun Woo-hyuk.
After giving up a hit to leadoff hitter Park Chan-ho in the bottom of the third, Kim Tae-gun’s sacrifice bunt went high, resulting in a flyout for the pitcher. However, the throw to second base was an error, putting a runner on second. Park Jeong-woo advanced to third, but he ended the inning by catching Choi Won-jun with a line drive.
Balazovic, who finished the fourth inning with a three-out, walked in the fifth inning, but did not give up a run by tying up a double play.
He also gave up a hit after one out in the sixth inning, but did not give up a run.
In the seventh inning, he was on the mound and easily managed to get two outs. However, after giving up a hit to Byun Woo-hyuk, he was in a crisis with runners on 1st and 2nd base due to a walk by Park Chan-ho. In the end, Balazovic’s role was over. He was replaced by Lee Byung-hun and came down from the mound.
The 6th inning’s batting line added one more point, making it 1-0. Lee Byung-hun ended the match with pinch hitter Choi Hyung-woo with a fly ball to center field, protecting Balazovic’s victory.
Doosan maintained its 1-0 lead, and Balazovic earned his first win for Doosan.
After the game, 메이저사이트 Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop said, “Starting pitcher Balazovic showed his best pitching since joining the team. It was a day when he showed what we expected when he was recruited. I sincerely congratulate him on his first win, and I hope he will continue to pitch like today for the rest of the season.”
Balazovic said
“I’m happy to have recorded my first win. I made mistakes in my early appearances. It was difficult to think about how to deal with the batters I was facing for the first time and analyze them, but I corrected myself by throwing the pitches I was confident in, which led to good results.” He added, “I’ve definitely improved in terms of physical strength that a starting pitcher should have. However, I’m not 100% yet. Starting pitchers need a variety of pitches, but I’m still in the process of adjusting.”
It must have been frustrating that the team’s batting lineup, which had scored 30 runs the day before, cooled down to just one run, but Balazovic said, “It’s easier for a pitcher if there’s a lot of run support, but today, all the fielders behind me showed good defense. Thanks to that, we were able to win 1-0.”
Balazovic said, “People say that the first win is the hardest, but I achieved that. My goal is to consistently pitch well. I’ll adjust and improve so that I can get better than I am now.”