"I was worried he might hit it with his fist..." Yeom Kyung-yeop's concern → Finally, a signal of revival; if No. 1 LG's 'this player' also comes back to form

*This content was translated by AI.

"I was worried he might hit it with his fist…."

Yeom Kyung-yeop (58), manager of the LG Twins, said with a smile. It was about the team's outfielder Moon Sung-ju (29).

Ahead of the game against the SSG Landers at Seoul Jamsil Stadium on the 11th, Manager Yeom joked, "Moon Sung-ju's batting has been so poor that I took him out of the starting lineup. It might be better to use Hong Chang-ki." He added, "I'm worried that (Moon) Sung-ju might end up hitting the ball with his fist instead of his bat, or hitting it with his hand."

On that day, LG's outfield saw Park Hae-min (36) at center field, Hong Chang-ki (33) at right field, and Song Chan-ui (27) at left field, while Moon Sung-ju started the game from the bench.

At the start of this season, despite a general slump in the team's offense, Moon Sung-ju hit a powerful .366 batting average (82 at-bats, 30 hits) in 26 games through April 30. However, due to severe abdominal muscle pain, he was removed from the first team on May 1 and made his return in a game against the NC Dinos on the 5th, about a month later.

In his first game back, he went 2-for-4, appearing to show his usual batting form. However, from the following day through the SSG game on the 10th, he fell into a severe slump, going 1-for-15 in four games (batting average .067). That is why Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop expressed concern that "he might end up hitting with his fist" and removed him from the starting lineup to give him some breathing room and rest.

In response to the manager's consideration, Moon Sung-ju immediately fired a signal of revival on that day. In the bottom of the 7th inning with the team leading 13-1, one out, and a runner on first, he came to bat as a pinch-hitter for Park Hae-min. He connected with a 145 km/h fastball from opposing pitcher Shin Sang-yeon and drove a hit that dropped in left-center field.

In the bottom of the 8th inning with two outs and runners on first and second, Moon Sung-ju well pushed back a 143 km/h two-seam fastball from Park Si-hoo but was thrown out on a straight-line hit by the excellent defense of opposing third baseman Choi Yun-seok. His season stats stand at a .330 batting average (103 at-bats, 34 hits), 7 runs scored, and 14 RBIs in 32 games.

Leading the league, LG secured a decisive 15-1 victory on this day, with Song Chan-ui recording four hits (four doubles) and five RBIs, and Hong Chang-ki contributing two hits and one walk. If Moon Sung-ju also regains his peak condition, an even more formidable outfield lineup is expected to be completed.

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*This content was translated by AI.