Kim Min-woo Controls Israel Batting Lineup with Forkball

Starting Pitching Matchup Today with Joy Wagman

[Image source=Yonhap News]

The baseball national team, revived by Kim Hyun-soo's (LG) walk-off hit, will challenge a direct advance to the semifinals without even 24 hours of rest. On the 2nd at noon, they will have a rematch against Israel at Yokohama Stadium in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. The team won 6-5 in a tiebreaker after extra innings in their first group stage game on the 29th of last month.

Manager Kim Kyung-moon will send Kim Min-woo (Hanwha) to the mound for another victory. He is a right-handed pitcher who shut down the American batting lineup scorelessly over 1⅔ innings in the second group stage game on the 31st of last month. He cleanly retired five batters with only thirteen pitches. His fastball, in the mid-140 km/h range, combined with an effective forkball, was key. The forkball was clocked in the mid-130 km/h range, hitting the catcher's mitt, and can be thrown even slower. This season in the KBO League, he recorded 9 wins, 5 losses, and an ERA of 3.89.

Israel counters with Joey Wagman. He is a right-handed pitcher who was selected 513th overall by the Chicago White Sox in the 2013 Major League Baseball draft. Up to 2017, he appeared in 124 minor league games, recording 21 wins, 17 losses, 6 saves, and an ERA of 4.43. He has no big league experience. Wagman took the loss in the game against the United States on the 30th of last month. He struggled over 3 innings, throwing 41 pitches, allowing 4 hits, striking out 4, and giving up 3 runs.

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