LG Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop on Kelly's MLB Return Save: "He's MLB's Im Chan-gyu"

LG Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop on Kelly's MLB Return Save: "He's MLB's Im Chan-gyu"

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LG Twins manager Yeom Gyeong-yeop expressed his expectations for the performance of Casey Kelly (34, Cincinnati Reds), who recorded a save in his return game to Major League Baseball (MLB), saying that he is a rarity.

Kelly pitched three perfect innings to earn a save in the bottom of the 7th inning when the team was leading 10-2 in an away game against the Pittsburgh Pirates held at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA on the 25th (Korean time).

His top speed was not fast at 149 km/h, but he threw a variety of pitches including a fastball, slider, changeup, curve, cutter, and sinker.

Kelly played for LG from 2019 to July of this year, recording 73 wins, 46 losses, and an ERA of 3.25 in 163 KBO games.

Upon hearing this news ahead of the away game against Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on this day, Manager Yeom said, "This is the Lim Chan-gyu of the major leagues," and "Lim Chan-gyu has a lot of changeups, so major league batters can't hit his pitches."

The game that Director Yeom mentioned was the MLB Seoul Series Special Game between the San Diego Padres and LG held at Gocheok Sky Dome on March 18th.

Chan-gyu Lim, who was selected as the LG starter at the time, pitched 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, 1 home run, 1 walk, 7 strikeouts, and 2 runs against active MLB players.

Coach Yeom explains that even if the ball is not fast, he can endure it with a variety of pitches.

Coach Yeom said, "Kelly is definitely a rarity. He has good control 커뮤니티 and a variety of breaking balls. He also learned the forkball in Korea. Without that, it would have been difficult."

Prior to his comeback on this day, Kelly, who had a career record of 2 wins, 11 losses, and an ERA of 5.46 in the major leagues, pitched effectively in his first major league appearance since 2018.

Although it is difficult to talk about potential for development at his age, Coach Yeom predicts that he will be able to take on the role of a pursuit team with his current skills alone.

He evaluated, "The role that Choi Dong-hwan played on our team last year is possible."

Dong-Hwan Choi pitched in 45 games last year with 1 hold, 1 save, and an ERA of 3.19