"Received reports that Ham Deok-ju is doing well." Left-handed ace's comeback imminent, 'first game appearance in 8 months' — When will Kim Kang-ryul return? [Jamsil On-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

LG Twins left-hander Ham Deok-ju (31) is set to make his first-division appearance. News also emerged of FA right-hander Kim Kang-ryul (38), who is returning to actual competition for the first time in eight months.

LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said on the 23rd, ahead of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular-season home game against Kiwoom Heroes to be held at Seoul Jamsil Baseball Stadium, "(Ham) Deok-ju received reports that he was doing well. He pitched two innings, so he wasn't called up to the first division because he couldn't pitch today or tomorrow."

Ham Deok-ju is a left-handed pitcher who joined LG in 2021 and contributed to two consecutive championships in 2023 and 2025. However, this year he posted 17 games, 1 win, 1 loss, 2 holds, 1 save, and an ERA of 7.43, which was not good, so he was removed from the first division on the 12th.

After resting for a while, Ham Deok-ju made his long-awaited appearance in the first game of a doubleheader against the Lotte Giants' second division team in the Futures League home game on the previous day (the 22nd). He recorded 2⅓ innings, 1 hit allowed, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts, and scoreless pitching.

In this game, another player also made his long-awaited appearance. Kim Kang-ryul took the mound as the team's fifth pitcher and pitched 1 inning, allowing 1 hit, 0 walks, and 1 strikeout, recording scoreless pitching.

This was his first actual game appearance in as long as 8 months since a Futures League game against the Hanwha Eagles' second division team on September 26 last year. Kim Kang-ryul signed a 3+1-year FA contract with LG worth up to 1.4 billion won after the 2024 season ended. However, due to frequent injuries, he only appeared in 12 first-division games last year and did not play a single game this year.

Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop stated, "(Kim) Kang-ryul is in the build-up process and it's not bad. He has often had pain in his shoulder and hip, but now he is fine. We intend to use him well even when he is not injured. After watching the next game, if he is fine, we plan to promote him to the first division and have him appear one or two times in losing games. If he continues to do well, he may also be able to appear in winning games."

In this game, first-division pitchers Jung Woo-young, Jang Hyun-sik, and Kim Dae-hyun all appeared to check their conditions. However, there were still players who were not in good shape.

Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop set the standard, saying, "Those players are the same as the first-division players. If they perform well in the second division, they will be promoted; if not, they won't come up. Even if a player is not doing well in the first division, they are still struggling in the second division. I absolutely do not believe they should be promoted just because the date has come. They must pitch well to be called up."

Meanwhile, on this day, LG constructed its lineup with Hong Chang-ki (right fielder), Park Hae-min (center fielder), Austin Dean (first baseman), Oh Ji-hwan (shortstop), Park Dong-won (catcher), Lee Young-bin (third baseman), Gu Bon-hyeok (second baseman), Moon Jung-bin (designated hitter), and Song Chan-ui (left fielder). The starting pitcher was Im Chan-kyu.

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*This content was translated by AI.