“My brothers told me that my late father would help me a lot.”
In the second round of the semi-playoff between the LG Twins and the KT Wiz in the professional baseball league held at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on the 6th. With LG leading 7-2 with the bases loaded with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, LG left fielder Moon Sung-joo snatched KT’s last batter Kang Baek-ho’s ball while jumping. LG closer Yoo Young-chan (27), who overcame the crisis of losing a point, finally wiped off his sweat with a calm look.
Soon, all the fielders of LG gathered on the mound. Instead of celebrating their victory with a lively ceremony, they wrapped their shoulders around each other and bowed their heads in silence. It was a time of remembrance for the late colleague’s father.
Yoo suddenly lost his father on Sunday. He was struck by a bolt from the blue when his training camp was in full swing for the postseason. Yoo rushed to stay with his father, and the LG team visited the funeral home in groups after completing training camp on Wednesday. The coffin was borne out on Saturday when the first round of the semi-playoff, the first edition of LG’s fall baseball league, took place.
Yoo Young-chan was worried that his absence would damage his team. “I will come back right after finishing the foot recognition in the morning.” LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop dissuaded him. “Rest a little more and spend some time with your family,” he said. LG played its first game without a firefighter, and Yoo Young-chan joined the team that night.
Ahead of the second game, veteran LG pitcher Kim Jin-sung said, “Young-chan must be mentally and physically very tired. Our bullpen pitchers threw more energy instead of Young-chan. I hope he doesn’t feel sorry for his team.”
Other players felt the same way. Before the game, they gathered in front of the dugout, mourned together with short silence, and ran to the ground. With the support and support from his teammates, Yoo Young-chan grabbed the ball again.
The process was not smooth. He allowed walks after one out, and allowed infield hits and hit balls consecutively after two outs. However, he managed to wrap up the game safely without giving any points. “After preempting the second strike, the number of pitches increased, but fortunately, I did not lose any points, so I don’t think it will affect the next game,” Yeom said, adding, “Isn’t it my first game (after the injury)? I think it will get better as we continue the series going forward?”
Lim Chan-kyu, who won the starting title on the day, also gave a heartbreaking ovation to Yoo Young-chan, saying, “(My father’s prize) is beyond description. It must have been very difficult to come back right away, but I’m proud of you for throwing it well and thank you.”
Lim Chan-gyu also suffered from the pain of saying goodbye to his father forever during the 2021 season. He knows better than anyone else how a heartbroken junior feels. “My heart will be broken and it will be hard for a longer time than I thought,” Lim said. “But playing in the game and pitching well must have been a great comfort to my family.” 토토사이트
“Before I went up to the mound, I honestly thought about my father a lot,” Yoo said after the game. “But I thought I shouldn’t do that on the mound, so I tried to throw it with the same mindset as any other day.” “My brothers encouraged me a lot, saying, ‘My late father will help me.’ I also want to repay that support.”
Yoo Young-chan replaced Ko Woo-suk, who left for the U.S. this year, as LG’s new closing pitcher. While pitching 63 2/3 innings in 62 regular-season games, Yoo played his part by posting 7 wins, 5 losses, 1 hold and 26 saves, and an earned run average (ERA) of 2.97. He will be responsible for LG’s backdoor policy this fall as well.
“My father didn’t see last year’s Korean Series in person. That’s why I really wanted to watch this fall baseball game with him, but I’m very sad that I couldn’t do that,” Yoo Young-chan said. “I will try to throw more vigorously and better (to dispel that regret).”
