A top foreign pitcher with great baseball skills, a great fit with Korean culture, and a great relationship with his teammates. But it’s definitely not what it was at the beginning of the season.
James Nail of the Kia Tigers is the best foreign pitcher in the first half of the KBO according to the league’s members. In a Sports Chosun survey of 50 general managers, managers, head coaches, and players from 10 clubs, Nail received a whopping 30 votes to take the top spot. He was the overwhelming “ace.” Even though Will Crowe, who was expected to be the “foreign one-two punch,” was unexpectedly injured, Nail was able to anchor the starting rotation alongside Yang Hyun-jong, allowing KIA to take the top spot. It was a driving force.
However, Nail’s recent outings have certainly been a drop-off from the beginning of the season. Nail maintained a sub-one ERA until early June. While his ERA, which is based on innings pitched and runs allowed, is not an absolute measure of a pitcher’s quality, he was able to keep his opponents on their toes by pitching a lot of innings with few runs allowed.
However, his ERA has been skyrocketing since June.
After posting a monthly ERA of 1.47 in April and 1.84 in May, Nail has a 4.40 ERA in June and a 5.63 ERA in three games in July. His season-long ERA has also skyrocketed. After the June 7 game against Doosan (6⅓ innings, 5 runs, 4 earned runs), Nail’s ERA was 1.82, but after the SSG game on June 14 (5⅔ innings, 3 earned runs), it jumped to 2.96. He lost the top spot for the lowest ERA to Kyle Hart (NC), and is now on the verge of breaking into the triple digits.
First, the ball stretched. Since Nail’s “resignation nightmare” against the Busan Lotte on June 25, when he gave up nine runs (four earned) in five innings, he’s been making small changes to his pitch mix and delivery ratio every game. 토토사이트 추천 He increased the number of four-seam fastballs, which had been low, and used the most sweepers of all pitches against SSG on June 14. Against LG Electronics on the 9th, he used two-seam fastballs to good effect.
However, as the number of balls has increased recently, it has become more difficult. Against SSG on the 14th, he had 13 first-pitch strikes and 12 first-pitch balls, meaning he only started half of his at-bats with a first-pitch strike. The unfavorable count battle continued, and the pitch count increased as more balls were thrown.
This was somewhat expected.
Nail has spent the last three years in the United States, mostly in the bullpen. In the past, he has been a full-time starter, but there were concerns about his fitness. This was also a concern for other teams that had him on their list.
But what’s impressive about Nail is that he has never left the mound before the fifth inning. In his 19 games this season, he hasn’t pitched more than five innings in any of them, and he’s had 10 quality starts. While his strikeout rate, walks, and runs allowed have been on the rise lately, he’s still fulfilling his primary role as an ace.
However, Kia’s woes are expected to continue. Kia is a team that is challenging for the championship. I don’t know how long the fight for first place will last, but it’s important to have a handle on the ‘big games’ in the second half of the season, and even the postseason. Even if Yang Hyun-jong is healthy, there is no denying that the team needs an ‘ace’ to lead alongside him.
We’ll have to wait and see if Nail’s struggles are temporary or if he’s no longer a hard pitch for opposing hitters to hit.