'How could this be?' KIA's starting rotation decimated: 'ERA 10.80→27.00→7.50→10.38'... What suddenly happened to the four pitchers?

*This content was translated by AI.

Starting pitching is not working. What has happened to the KIA Tigers starting pitchers? All four starters, from the first to the fourth, have faltered.

On the 7th, KIA lost 8-11 to the Hanwha Eagles in an away game of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field. With this loss, KIA finished with 15 wins, 1 tie, and 18 losses. Recording a winning percentage margin of '-3', they are tied for 6th place alongside the Doosan Bears (15 wins, 1 tie, 18 losses).

Coincidentally, the starting pitchers have recently shown signs of being completely decimated. First, on the 3rd against the KT Wiz, the ace first starter James Nail faltered. His stats for the day were 5 innings, 7 hits allowed (1 home run), 2 walks, 4 strikeouts, and 6 runs allowed (6 earned runs). His daily ERA reached 10.80, and the team lost 4-6.

Following a day off on the 4th (Monday), Lee Ui-ri started against Hanwha on the 5th. However, Lee Ui-ri showed poor form with 1⅔ innings, 2 hits allowed (1 home run), 5 walks, 1 hit-by-pitch, 3 strikeouts, and 5 runs allowed (5 earned runs), and was pulled early. His daily ERA reached 27.00. Nevertheless, it was encouraging that the team's offense exploded to secure a 12-7 victory.

However, the offensive firepower only helped up to that point. Oller, who started against Hanwha on the 6th, also faltered. He pitched 6 innings, allowing 7 hits (1 home run), 3 walks, 4 strikeouts, and 5 runs (5 earned runs), marking the most runs allowed in a single game this season. His daily ERA was 7.50. The team lost 2-7.

Next, on the 7th against Hanwha, Yang Hyeon-jong started but bowed his head after pitching 4⅓ innings, allowing 10 hits (1 home run), 2 walks, 2 strikeouts, and 6 runs (5 earned runs). His daily ERA was 10.38. The team also fell on its knees, losing 8-11 after managing to score 4 runs in the bottom of the 9th inning.

In fact, if the starting rotation collapses early, there is nothing a manager can do. It is a baseball axiom that teams with strong starting rotations are the ones that can get closer to the championship. Ultimately, with all four recent starters faltering, KIA managed only one win and three losses.

KIA manager Lee Beom-ho, the team's commander, said before the 7th game regarding Oller: "Nail and Oller need to pitch well for the team to hold on and move forward. Domestic starting pitchers have good days and bad days. But once Nail and Oller start to falter, the starting rotation collapses, and we end up losing the game without even being able to use our bullpen cards."

He continued, "That's why the starting pitchers are the most important. They had a tough time in 1 or 2 games, so they will likely try to make some changes and find a way. Since there are still many games to pitch, I am not overly concerned. I consider the 1st or 2 slightly poor outings as just that, and I will look forward to their next appearances," expressing his trust.

KIA will face the Lotte Giants at Busan Sajik Baseball Stadium from the 8th to the 10th. Hwang Dong-ha, who has taken on the role of the fifth starter since mid-last month, will start. In the previous game on the 2nd against KT, Hwang Dong-ha pitched 7 innings, allowing 4 hits and striking out 8 batters in a scoreless performance, achieving his second win of the season. With the first through fourth starters all collapsing, will the fifth starter once again pitch heroically to save the team from crisis?

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*This content was translated by AI.