Ryu Jung-il prepares to face Australia at the Tokyo Dome on Saturday.
Baseball coach Ryu Jung-il has revealed his winning strategy ahead of the first game of the Asian Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) against Australia.
The baseball team led by Ryu will play Australia at 12 p.m. on Nov. 16 at the Tokyo Dome.
The tournament will feature three preliminary rounds, with the top two teams heading straight to the finals and the bottom two playing for third and fourth place. In the event of a tie, the winner of the best-of-three series will advance.
South Korea’s path to the finals starts with Australia. If they start the tournament with one loss, they won’t be able to guarantee a spot in the final. That’s why it’s imperative to beat Australia.
South Korea will start Moon Dong-ju, who has become a national ace since the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games, and will be looking for a win against Australia.
“I expect Moon to pitch well,” Ryu told reporters before the game. I’m thinking about five to six innings and 80 to 90 pitches. If he pitches well according to the scenario, we will use bullpen resources such as Kim Young-gyu behind him, and if he is replaced early, we will immediately use starting resources such as Oh Won-seok, Choi Seung-yong, and Shin Min-hyuk.”
Members of the South Korea national baseball team train before their first-round game against Australia at the 2023 Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) at the Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan, on Nov. 15.
“The players will probably feel unfamiliar with the Tokyo Dome. The mound is also slightly higher than in Korea, so pitchers may have a harder time.” “In times like this, it’s important for everyone to stick to the basics. We need to catch well, throw well, hit well, and run well to win,” he emphasized.
“I think we should refrain from excessive ceremonies during the game. The players might call me a ‘brat,’ but I want them to keep the ceremonies in the dugout and focus on the game on the field.”
With the starting lineup yet to be revealed, Ryu explained that he will use Yoon Dong-hee, who has a good batting average, in the third spot in the batting order and Na Seung-yeop as the designated hitter.
“When I analyzed the Australian starting pitchers (Brody, Cooper, Vassalakis), they are young and fast, but their pitches are simple, just a splitter and a curveball, and their fastball is a little high,” Ryu said. “We will bat Yoon Dong-hee, who has been hitting well since the Asian Games, in the center field and Na Seung-yeop, who has excellent hitting ability, in the designated hitter spot to maximize our offensive power.”
Australia is the team that handed Korea a heartbreaking loss at the 2023 World Baseball Classic. The Koreans went 7-8 and suffered a bitter first-round exit. As such, there are many hoping that this team will avenge that loss.
However, Ryu said, “Compared to the WBC, the manager and coach have changed, and the players are almost all different. Instead, we are focusing on the younger players gaining international experience and growing,” said Liu. 19가이드03