Bottomed out and on a wild ride. He’s also the best outfielder in the league. He’s the best pitcher in the league right now.
Samsung Lions corner Seabold, once the ugly duckling. He has completely transformed into a swan. Now, he is the ace of the Lions.
Connor started the home game against the KIA Tigers at Lions Park in Daegu on February 2. It was his 18th start of the season and the first half finale.
He faced a hard-hitting lineup from first-place Kia and was unflappable.
He overpowered the Kia lineup with a fastball that topped out at 152 mph and a slider, along with a sharp cutter and changeup that touched 141 mph. In seven innings, he allowed one run on six hits, two walks and three strikeouts. The only run allowed was a solo homer to lead-off Kim Do-young in the fourth inning.
He’s had three consecutive Quality Starts+ (7 innings or less) in his last three starts. In those three games, he has allowed just one earned run.
He was perfectly matched up against the league’s top pitcher,
Kia Nail, who leads the league with a 2.51 ERA. Nail gave up four runs (three earned) on four hits, three walks, and seven strikeouts in five innings, including a home run, before being relieved by the bullpen in the sixth inning.
His aggressive pitching with strong command. Once again, Connor was aggressive in his approach to the KIA batters. From his short arm swing to the moment he touches the catcher’s mitt, his fastball is in the lowest zone of the ABS with live dependency. 바카라사이트넷 His fastball is so powerful that hitters have a hard time dealing with his short and fast cutter. It’s an unbelievable turnaround.
The corner was Samsung’s biggest problem at the beginning of the season.
He had good pitches but was sensitive. He couldn’t adapt to the new environment. Connor couldn’t adapt to his home mound at Lions Park. As a result, he didn’t go many innings, which is the most important quality of a starter. In seven starts, his only quality start was against KT on March 23 (6 innings, 2 runs, 1 earned run). Through April, his ERA was a whopping 5.35. That’s why his ERA was in the 4-run range until this game, despite his recent string of strong performances.
In May,
Connor was getting better and better, but after solving his mound problems, he was a different pitcher. It was a heartbreaking moment for the club, which was considering replacing him. Samsung had an insurance card in David Buchanan, who had been a consistent ace for four seasons until last year, winning 54 games. Samsung had been in constant contact and prepared for the worst.
But with Reyes and Conner rebounding, any worries about the outside pitching duo are fading.
The bullpen collapsed and fell short of the seven-win mark, but finally broke into the triple digits in ERA (3.82). They have seven late quality starts, more than half of which are quality+.