“Take a look~”
Is this the 3rd best left-hander following토토사이트 Andy Van Hecken and Eric Yorkish? Ian McKinney (29), a new foreign pitcher hired by Kiwoom for only $185,000, has no major league experience that is easily found among foreign pitchers in the KBO League these days.
Even McKinney played for Gastonia Honeyhunters in the Atlantic League of the American Independent League this season. His performance was 4 wins and 1 loss with an ERA of 4.24 in 8 games. In the minor leagues, he had an average ERA of 3.59 with 49 wins and 31 losses in 176 games over 9 seasons. These are the specifications that tell the reason for the ransom price.
However, it seems difficult to judge this player simply by his ‘past’. It is because he showed formidable competitiveness in two games when he opened the lid. Clubs also need to make careful decisions, and McKinney also needs time to adapt to the KBO league. Hitters from nine clubs may take time to adapt to McKinney in the beginning.
On the 25th of last month, against Gocheok Doosan, he gave up 5 hits, 2 strikeouts, 3 walks and 2 runs in 4 innings. And on the 1st, he became the winning pitcher with 3 hits, 5 strikeouts, 2 walks and no runs in 6 innings against Gocheok SSG. 2 games 1 win 1 loss average ERA 1.80. Since he is a lefty with good reception, Doosan and SSG hitters had a hard time getting the timing right.
According to baseball statistics site Statties, McKinney used four-seam, changeup, curveball, and slider in that order. Four-seam average of 141.6km. There are no two-seam and splitter balls, but the breaking ball command was good. He has not yet adapted to the strike zone, but he has also pitched using the border line.
Looking back, Kiwoom’s representative left-handed foreign pitchers in the past, Van Heken and Yokishi, also had good deception types. His ball was not fast, but he lived long with various pitches and sharp commands. Van Hecken had an average ERA of 3.56 in 156 games over 6 years, and Yokishi had an ERA of 56-36 in 130 games for 5 years up to this season, 2.85.
Can McKinney continue this genealogy? General manager Ko Hyeong-wook said, “The biggest advantage is that the ball comes out hidden. He is 180 cm tall, so he is average, and it is difficult to get the ball right. He is not a player who moves back and forth. He is also picky about the type of pitch, and his reception is good.”
He said, “Originally, I was supposed to throw one game in the Futures League and go up, but I had to adapt in the first team anyway, so I threw it with the mindset that I would adapt in the first team even at a loss. He probably hasn’t fully adjusted to the jet lag yet.”
When he said that there were not many expectations for McKinney, general manager Ko Hyeong-wook smiled and said, “It was like that when Yokishi and Van Hecken first came. Take a look.” Coach Hong Won-ki said, “I think I’ll have to make a decision after two or three games.”
At this point, we have no choice but to reserve judgment. As director Hong said, if more samples are accumulated, it is expected that evaluation will be possible naturally. However, looking at just the last 2 games, he has been better than Yokishi, who has been shaken all season.