The Samsung Lions of professional baseball selected foreign pitcher Ariel Furado (29) early as the starter for the season opener against the Kiwoom Heroes in Daegu on the 22nd. Furado, who has been a member of Kiwoom for the past two years, expressed confidence, saying, "I know all the weaknesses of the Kiwoom batters." 온라인카지노

Although it has been proven in the KBO League, the performance of the exhibition games is a little unstable. On the 10th, when he took his first mound, he struggled with five hits, two walks, five strikeouts and three runs in three ⅔ innings against the Doosan Bears in Daegu, and on the 16th, the match against KIA in Gwangju was defeated by allowing 10 hits, one walk, three strikeouts and six runs (five earned runs) in four innings. Average earned run in exhibition games was 9.39. 

In particular, in the match against KIA, Kim Do-young, Na Sung-bum, Choi Hyung-woo, Kim Sun-bin, Park Chan-ho, Choi Won-joon, and Patrick Wisdom were absent, and the backup hit hard. Park Jung-woo, Hong Jong-pyo and Kim Kyu-sung allowed two hits each against Furado. 

Backup hitters had 10 hits, but there were many missed hits, including three infield hits, and defense errors combined made some errors. The ball decision, which slightly deviated from the ABS zone, also broke Furado's pitching rhythm. 

Samsung manager Park Jin-man also did not worry about Furado's poor exhibition game. Ahead of the match against Hanwha in Daejeon on the 17th, manager Park Jin-man said of Furado, "This is an exhibition game and it's a process of making it. Yesterday (16th), he practiced other balls a little more." To a pitcher who is as young as Furado, the performance in the exhibition game is meaningless. 

"We (coaching staff) first make a decision based on ball power. I am not too worried because Furado's ball power is elevated to a certain extent," Park said, expressing unwavering trust. Although the weather in Gwangju was chilly on Wednesday, Furado threw fastballs with speeds of up to 148 kilometers per hour and 145 kilometers per hour on average. The number of pitches he pitched has increased to 82, and is ready to welcome the opening game. 

As a member of Kiwoom in his first year in the KBO League in 2023, Furado quickly adapted himself with an ERA of 0.00 in three exhibition games, 12 innings with 15 strikeouts and two runs (no earned run). At that time, he had to display competitiveness as a new foreign pitcher and earn trust from the coaching staff. 

However, he did not put much effort into exhibition games last year after completing a year of validation. He pitched in just one game, but suffered defeat in the match against NC Dinosaurs in Changwon on March 11 by allowing 12 hits (one homer) and one walk and six runs in three innings. 

On March 23, the opening day of the season, the match against KIA in Gwangju had 10 hits (one homer) and two walks, one strikeout and seven runs in four innings, which was disappointing, but since then, he has stabilized by starting quality games for two consecutive games. His overall performance this season was also outstanding, as he recorded 10 wins and eight losses with an earned run average of 3.36 strikeouts and 169 strikeouts. He played the second-most innings in the league, displaying consistent performance by posting the largest number of 23 quality starts in the league. 

Samsung does not worry about Furado at all because he is a pitcher who has been proven in the KBO league for two years and has no problems with his ball speed or physical condition. Attention is focusing on whether Furado will be able to show his true form from the opening game.