As a result, his grand slam off KIA’s Socrates Brito hurt. However, NC Submarine Lee Jae-hak, 33, has turned a corner this season.
After going 10-4 with a 3.75 ERA in 24 games in 2019, Lee spent three years in the “dark ages”. In those three years, he won 14 games and had ERAs 꽁머니사이트 in the 4-6 range. From a native ace who fed the NC mound in the early years of the organization, he was reduced to a reliever.
But he couldn’t stay down. Lee has changed dramatically this season. There was talk on the field that his arm swing had gotten faster. In fact, the average speed of his fastball this season, including the Gwangju KIA game on the 16th, is 140.6 kilometers according to baseball statistics site Statiz. It is 1.3 kilometers higher than last year’s 139.3 kilometers.
The change in speed seems to be more than that. SBS Sports commentator Lee Soon-cheol, who broadcast the KIA game, compared and analyzed that Lee Jae-hak has not only increased his arm speed, but also his arm angle. “Before, his arm angle was low, so his arm fell horizontally. Now his arm angle has increased and it falls vertically, which confuses hitters. It’s almost not a side arm now, it’s almost an overslice, a three-quarter.”
While it’s common for submariners to lose control of their pitches as they age and their arm angle increases, Lee’s is the opposite. It’s actually a positive because his arm swing has gotten faster to generate velocity. His pitch trajectory is slightly higher, which adds to the power of his changeup. Lee said that if you don’t hit his changeup before it drops to the floor, hitters don’t have a chance.
Lee is still more of a fastball and changeup two-pitch guy. However, his slider has become a more prominent pitch compared to previous years. Kang described it as a cut fastball before the game. “The cutter has gotten better. I’ve been trying to add another pitch and failing, but this time I have it. As I showed that I had a cutter, the power of my changeup also improved. I feel more stable overall,” he said.
However, Lee Jae-hak’s changeup movement was not as good as in his previous four games (2-1, 0.72 ERA). This was especially true in the first inning, as KIA batters came to the plate focusing on his fastball. Socrates lifted his fastball for a grand slam to right-center field.
Socrates had his worst day of the season. Seven runs on four hits and four walks in 3⅓ innings. In five games, he’s 2-1 with a 2.86 ERA. It was also a game that marked a significant 토토꽁포인트 change in style for Lee. If he hadn’t gotten hit by Socrates, he could have gone all the way to the fifth inning. It will be important to see if he can bounce back in his next start.
The NC starting lineup is in a state of emergency. The one-two punch of Eric Peddie and Changmo Koo is gone. Peddie is expected to return in about 10 days as his forearm pain is not severe. However, it is difficult to know when Chang-mo Koo will return as his forearm flexor is not good. “I think he’ll be back before the All-Star break, but we need to check more,” Kang said. New foreign pitchers Taylor Widener and Lee Yong-jun have also had their ups and downs. The resurgence of Lee Jae-hak is a big boost in this situation.