Manny Machado of the San Diego Padres poses with Casey Kelly, Dietrich Enns and Austin Dean of the L.G. Twins during the 2024 Seoul Series game between the San Diego Padres and the LG Twins at Gocheok Sky Dome on Monday, March 18, 2024 in Seoul, South Korea. Kelly was released by the LG Twins this week. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
As the 2024 KBO season progresses, here is a look at the top news and notes from the past week in Korea’s highest level of professional baseball.
Casey Kelly Makes Final Start for LG Twins – Right-handed American pitcher Casey Kelly was in the middle of his sixth season with the LG Twins after debuting with the team in 2019. However, his season was cut short on Saturday when the Twins announced they planned to release him.
Kelly is the longest-tenured foreign player in LG Twins history and threw 2.2 innings of shutout baseball on Saturday in his final game with the team. His former manager, Youm Kyoung-youb told reporters he gave Kelly a choice of whether he wanted to pitch in Saturday’s game.
“I gave him that choice,” Youm said of Kelly, the winning pitcher in game five of the 2023 Korean Series. “He spoke with his family and decided he wanted to make one final start. And I think the guys will play hard for him today because it would mean a lot to have him pick up the win in his final game.”
Kelly finished his Twins career 73-46 with a 3.25 ERA in 163 starts. After Saturday’s game, his teammates signed the lineup card for him to receive as a gift.
Early Stages of PitchCom in the KBO – Since the introduction of PitchCom in the KBO last week, players and coaches have enjoyed the technology implemented by Major League Baseball in 2022. PitchCom technology allows teams and players to call pitches without having the catcher signal pitch choices with his fingers.
“I think that makes it a little bit more difficult for the hitters,” KT Wiz starting pitcher Wes Benjamin told Yonhap News Agency. “When I can already come set walking around the mound, I know what pitch I’m throwing and Sung-woo also knew what pitch I was throwing. So the hitter didn’t have much time to be ready.”
Benjamin favors using PitchCom, but the KBO told the 10 KBO organizations that using the technology is optional. Additionally, the KBO has issued transmitters for both Korean-speaking and English-speaking players.
Samsung’s Ruben Cardenas Drills Walk-Off Home Run – Just a few weeks after securing a one-year, $447,000 contract with the Samsung Lions, outfielder Ruben Cardenas played the hero for his new club with a two-run, game-ending home run in the bottom of the ninth of Sunday’s 6-5 win against the Lotte Giants.
Cardenas, who has previous playing experience in minor league baseball with the Cleveland Guardians, Tampa Bay Rays, and Philadelphia Phillies organizations, drilled a 3-2 curveball over the left field wall to send Lions fans at Daegu Samsung Lions park into a frenzy. Kim Won-jung, who threw the hanging curveball to Cardenas, became a spectator as the ball sailed high into the night sky.
Cardenas, a Cuban-American, replaced David MacKinnon on the Lions roster after the club decided to part ways with the first baseman. His teammates showered Cardenas with water when he reached home plate, and even if it was cold, it seemed not to bother the 26-year-old.
This Day in Korean Baseball History – On July 22, 2014, South Korean closing pitcher Seunghwan Oh recorded the 300th save in his professional baseball career with Japan’s Hanshin Tigers of Nippon Professional Baseball.
From 2005-13, Oh recorded 277 saves in the KBO with the Samsung Lions, and had 39 saves in his first season with the Tigers in 2014.
Oh made his MLB debut on Opening Day, 2016, for the St. Louis Cardinals against the Pittsburgh Pirates and played four seasons in MLB from 2016-19 with the Cardinals, Toronto Blue Jays, and Colorado Rockies.
KBO Standings as of July 22, 2024
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