Samsung bullpen pitcher Choi Ji-kwang of professional baseball will eventually be put on the operating table due to an elbow injury. Samsung has a big concern in the postseason as the key winning team in the bullpen has been surgically separated.
Samsung delivered Choi Ji-kwang’s medical examination results ahead of the match against KT at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on Wednesday. “An MRI scan showed that he needs surgery due to damage to the medial ligament in his right elbow,” a Samsung source said. “He will undergo rehabilitation in stages after the surgery.”
Choi Ji-kwang sat down on the mound clutching his right arm during the match against Incheon SSG on the 14th. He immediately moved to the hospital and tried to get a hospital check-up, but he couldn’t get a checkup because he couldn’t straighten his elbow properly due to the tremendous pain. It took several days for him to get an MRI check-up due to the overlap of the Chuseok holiday.
Coach Park Jin-man said before the match, “Choi Ji-kwang’s MRI examination revealed the result. He needs surgery because of a torn ligament. It’s not Tommy John surgery, it’s a joint surgery. The rehabilitation period will be a little faster than Tommy John surgery. The hospital to be operated on is said to be on leave this week. I will have a consultation next week and set a date for the surgery.”
Coach Park Jin-man, who had a big bad news at the end of the season, said, “Choi Ji-kwang was a big player in the bullpen, which is unfortunate and unfortunate. I’ve devoted myself and worked hard, but I feel sorry, I feel sorry, and I have many thoughts.”
After graduating from Busan High School, Choi joined Samsung in the second round (ranking ninth) of the rookie draft in 2017, and joined the team in June this season. He pitched in 35 games, winning three games, losing two and posting an ERA of 2.23 with seven holds, showing stellar performance as a must-winner. Prior to his injury, he maintained an ERA in the 0 range in recent 10 games. He will not be able to play in the post season as he will undergo surgery due to unfortunate injury.
When asked about the players to replace Choi Ji-kwang’s empty spot, coach Park Jin-man said, “There are times when our bullpen is good and times when it is bad, but there are Kim Tae-hoon, Lim Chang-min and Oh Seung-hwan. Oh Seung-hwan has been good and bad these days, but since he has experienced a big game, he can’t ignore that, so I think we need to see which team we are going to face first.” He added, “If the postseason opponent team is decided, I think there will be a change of two or three players in the entry.”
Veteran players in the Samsung bullpen include Oh Seung-hwan, Lim Chang-min, and Kim Jae-yoon. All of them have ample experience in finishing, but they have had ups and downs throughout this season. Oh has an ERA of 4.97 with three wins, nine losses and 27 saves and two holds in 57 games. Lim has an ERA of 3.88 with two wins and one save and 28 holds in 59 games. Kim Jae-yoon, who took over the finishing pitcher due to Oh’s poor performance, has an ERA of 4.18 with nine saves and 25 holds in 63 games. Besides them, Kim Tae-hoon has an ERA of 4.11 with three wins and two losses and 22 holds in 53 games.
In blon saves, Im Chang-min had three, Kim Jae-yoon had five, and Oh Seung-hwan had eight. In the last 10 games, Oh has a 9.00 ERA. Kim Jae-yoon has a 9.00 ERA in September, and Im Chang-min has a 5.40 ERA in September.
When the three bullpen veterans said they were getting hit hard recently, manager Park said, “There were times when it was bad and times when it was good, so it’s a little hard to talk about the result. But there were times when it was good, and it wasn’t only when it was bad, so we have to trust our must-win team.” 안전놀이터