After sweeping the LG Twins and KIA Tigers last week, the Samsung Lions look to continue their momentum. Taking the mound twice a week is their ace, David Buchanan.
Buchanan is 8-6 with a 3.06 ERA in 22 games and 135⅓ innings pitched this season, and hasn’t added a win to his resume since his last start against Gochuk Kiwoom on March 29. But even with the bad luck, his pitching has been near perfect. Buchanan did his part by getting quality starts against the LG Twins in Daegu on the 4th (7 innings, 3 runs) and the SSG Landers in Incheon on the 11th (6 innings, 2 runs). In the SSG game, Buchanan threw 127 pitches, the most pitches in a single game since his KBO debut.
However, Buchanan’s dizzying moment came on the 16th against LG Electronics in Daegu. Buchanan felt uncomfortable in the dugout after the top of the second inning and was forced to leave the mound early when he didn’t feel better after throwing practice pitches in the top of the third inning.
The next day, Samsung manager Park Jin-man said, “I think he had a little lump in his throat at the time. It was better than yesterday (the 16th). I think we’ll have to wait until tomorrow (the 18th) to see how he’s doing.” “During the video review (of whether Moon’s pitch was fair in the top of the second inning), I suddenly turned my head to look at the scoreboard and felt pain, and I think it came up briefly at that moment. For some reason, I couldn’t throw the ball to the last batter, Moon Sung-joo. He said he was going to keep throwing, so I went out in the top of the third inning, but when I was warming up, I realized I couldn’t do it, so I took him out,” Buchanan explained.
However, Buchanan felt responsible for the team’s 3-6 loss as they blew a lead after he went down, and he also expressed anger at himself for not being able to pitch as many innings. While no one can blame Buchanan for the situation as it was an unforeseen variable, the ‘Ace’ could not easily accept his behavior.
He has plenty of time to make up for his early loss. Buchanan will face Lee Tae-yang in the starting lineup against the Hanwha Eagles at Eagles Park in Daejeon on April 22. With rain in the forecast for this week, we’ll have to wait and see, but in terms of rotation, Buchanan is expected to make one more start against Daegu Kiwoom on the 27th. If he can get some run support from the bats, he could make it two wins in one week.안전놀이터
If Buchanan gets the win in both games, he will reach the 10-win plateau for the fourth straight year. It would also give Samsung a bit more breathing room, as they are only one game behind eighth-place Hanwha and 1.5 games behind last-place Kiwoom. With a lot on his shoulders, it will be interesting to see if Buchanan can lead his team to two wins this week.