'4:9→10:9' 0 innings, 5 earned runs: A shocking defeat brought tears to the eyes of 22-year-old KIA closer, as the manager urged him, "How much must you be frustrated... You are a player who will handle important tasks." [Suwon]

*This content was translated by AI.

KIA Tigers manager Lee Beom-ho (45) embraced closer Sung Young-tak (22), who delivered a disappointing performance the previous day.

Ahead of the regular-season away game against KT Wiz at Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 21st, manager Lee Beom-ho calmly reflected on the previous game: "It's in the past. (Sung) Young-tak was a pitcher who had been doing well up until then. The game he lost after taking the mound was one where he did everything he could, so it's fine."

The previous day, KIA had been leading 9-4 but suffered a shocking comeback defeat after surrendering six runs in the bottom of the ninth inning. A major factor was closer Sung Young-tak, who failed to record a single out, allowing four hits (one home run), two walks (one hit-by-pitch), and five earned runs. The shock was even greater because Young-tak had recorded four consecutive saves prior to this and held a season ERA of 1.78 without a loss as the team's closer.

Manager Lee stated, "I definitely felt that KT has strong cohesion. It seems they really step up when it matters, so we need to pay attention to that going forward." He added, "I didn't say anything specific to (Sung) Young-tak. I told the players it's okay. The most important thing is not to feel stressed. If you're worried about others' opinions, it will affect today's game as well. The previous game is over, and we have many games where we came back to win. I told them not to worry and to do their best in today's game."

Questions also arose regarding the timing of the pitching change. Veteran reliever Kim Beom-su entered the game when the score was 8-9 after allowing a two-run pinch-hit to Kwon Dong-jin, narrowing the gap to one run. By the time Kim entered, the momentum had already shifted to KT. In response, manager Lee explained, "First, (Hwang) Dong-ha looked like he couldn't pitch through the fifth inning, so we took him out early. After that, we thought of having five pitchers each throw one inning, so we brought him in. Actually, Kim wasn't scheduled to pitch. As the situation unfolded, Kim was on standby, and (Han) Jae-seung was also prepared."

He continued with a smile, "In a way, it would have been better for (Sung) Young-tak to handle the situation, so we watched a bit longer. However, the pitch count got too high, and we couldn't help but worry about injury, so we had to use Kim. Such games may come up again in the future, but I hope we only have to do this three more times until the end of the season."

After the comeback defeat, broadcast footage captured Sung Young-tak weeping uncontrollably, leaving KIA fans feeling bitter. The manager shared the same sentiment.

Manager Lee said, "(Sung) Young-tak must be so frustrated. Since he is a young player and has never experienced this before, the shock must have been even greater. Still, when he came out earlier, I saw him smiling." He added, "While the situation that arose is something we need to think about, he is a player with a lot ahead of him. He is a player who must handle important tasks, and if he holds onto such memories for too long, it will affect today's and tomorrow's games. I encouraged him to forget everything and start anew."

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*This content was translated by AI.