“10 wins for two consecutive years, not just anyone. The team was also the Hanwha Eagles.”
The Korean national baseball team in the World Baseball Classic (WBC).
Baseball fans’ eyes are focused on the Korea-Japan match, but coach Lee Kang-cheol and other coaches think differently. Even before announcing his official entry, Lee has repeatedly emphasized that he is “focusing on Australia.”
In addition to being the first game of the tournament, they are rivals competing with Japan for the remaining spot to advance to the second round (quarterfinals) of the finals.
It is equally difficult for both teams against Japan, which prides itself on having the best members of all time. Considering the evaluation that Australia clearly has a superiority in power over the Czech Republic or China, Korea and Australia see each other as ‘a sacrifice for one win to advance to the quarterfinals’.
The evaluation of the baseball world is that the power has become much weaker than before. On the contrary, since it is the first game, it has the advantage of being able to pitch in comfortably.
However, the teams that frustrated Korea in the last 3 or 4 tournaments were the Netherlands and Israel, which were outside the power analysis radar. It was not easy to analyze as it was a minor league-oriented team, and the vigilance was light. This is the reason why the tension does not easily disappear from the gaze toward Australia in this tournament.
The key is how long the selection of the limited number of pitches, 65, will be thrown. However, as they are facing unfamiliar pitchers, the prediction is that it will be a last-minute one or two-run fight rather than a lot of points.
Considering that Australia is also going to play an all-out war against Korea, Warwick Saupold, who played for Hanwha, is likely to be the starting pitcher. Saupold played 357⅓ innings in 59 games during the 2019-2020 two seasons. He went 22-24 (1 shutout) with an earned run average of 4.16. 스포츠토토
In particular, in his second season rather than his first season, it was evaluated that he had a hard time analyzing the power of other teams. Rather than an overwhelming fastball, he is a pitcher who competes with a fastball in the early to mid-140 km range with various breaking balls and control.
Serupold, who plays for the Perth Heat of the Australian Baseball League (ABL), exchanged greetings with players he was close with during the match against Geelong Korea. Most of the analysis is that the Korean side will have an advantage in terms of knowing each other well.
But carelessness is forbidden. An official from the national team said, “We are desperate for one win. As much as Japan is afraid of us, Australia is so scary for us.” It’s a difficult tournament to post, especially hitting long shots,” he explained.
“Supold is never an easy pitcher to deal with. The fact that he won 10 wins for two consecutive years is proof that he is a good pitcher. Even if you bring in a major leaguer, there are cases where he is kicked out mid-season,” he said. If he had played on a team with better infield defense, he would have been more protected and had better results. Think of Josh Lindblom (Lotte Giants → Doosan Bears transfer),” he added.
Ultimately, the performance of the Taegeuk mark depends on organizational power. This is the reason why coach Lee Kang-cheol, who leads the team from the standpoint of a non-full-time professional team commander, has a heavy burden on his shoulders.