12 wins last year → 0 wins this year → mid-season start → 5.1 innings in the second team, 82 pitches, 1 run. But when is he going to get a chance to start?
He pitched five solid innings in a Futures League game. However, the first team starting rotation is already full.
LG Twins’ Min-Ho Lee, who won 12 games last year, will have a chance to keep the job for the rest of the season.
Lee’s pace is picking up. After being sent down to the second team to rebuild his body following a rough start to the season, Lee has been improving his pitches and conditioning through his Futures League appearances.
After pitching 1⅓ innings against the Sangsung on July 28, he went three innings against the NC on July 2 and five innings against the Hanwha Eagles on July 18.
In his 5⅔ innings of work against Hanwha, Lee allowed one run on five hits with one walk and three strikeouts in a 2-1 victory. 토토사이트
The start of the second inning was disappointing. After a one-hit shutout in the first inning, Lee gave up a double to Ahn Jin in the top of the second and a single to Lee Min-joon in the eighth to put runners on first and third. He gave up his first and final run when Lee Sang-hyuk singled to right field. Luckily, Kim Min-ki got a fly ball to center field to prevent further damage. In the third, fourth, and fifth innings, he retired the side in order. In the bottom of the fifth, Choi Won-young’s triple and Ahn Ik-hoon’s RBI single scored two runs to make it 2-1.
Lee Min-ho came on in the top of the sixth and got two outs, but gave up a walk to Kim Gun in the fourth and a single to Jung Eun-won in the fifth before being replaced by Kim Dae-hyun. He threw 82 pitches.
Lee Min-ho started the season as the fourth starter, but after his first appearance, he went on the disabled list due to elbow pain, and when he returned in late May, he pitched poorly. On June 22, he was sent down to the second team after giving up three runs on three hits and two walks in one inning against the NC Dinos. In five games this season, he is winless with two losses and a .503 average. He began his rehabilitation in the second level and worked his way up.
If he throws up to 80 pitches in the Futures League, he’ll have enough pitches to make the first team.
However, it’s doubtful that Lee will get a chance to start. The Korean starting rotation is currently made up of Choi Won-tae, Im Chan-kyu, and Lee Jung-yong.
Until July, the fourth and fifth spots were still up for grabs, but with the addition of Choi Won-tae and Lee Jung-yong finding stability as a starter, the Korean starting rotation is now solidified.
Lee has been tremendous in August with two wins and a 1.06 ERA in three games. Choi Won-tae also pitched seven innings of four-run ball against the SSG Landers on the 18th.
For now, he is best used as a backup starter when the starters show signs of fatigue and need a break.
Lee Min-ho has been steadily earning the starting job since joining the team as a first-round pick in 2020. Last year, he performed well as the fifth starter, winning 12 games. But this year, after starting as the fourth starter, injuries and poor form have seen him slip between the two. When will Lee get his chance, and will he be able to seize it?