KBO postseason managers welcome extra rest for players provided by rain

Dealing with the second postponement of their Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason series, managers for the LG Twins and the Samsung Lions said Friday they both welcome extra rest for their players. The two teams had been set to play Game 4 of their best-of-five series starting at 6:30 p.m. at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul, but the league called off the game at 4:10 p.m. amid persistent rainfall. The game has been rescheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday at Jamsil. The Lions lead the series 2-1. They won the first two games by a combined 20-9, but the Twins won the third game by 1-0 on Thursday night. With few relievers in his circle of trust, Twins manager Youm Kyoung-youb said the extra rest afforded by the postponement should help his team. "With one more day off, I hope we will have more options available for Saturday," Youm said, speaking moments before the game was officially postponed. "For us, every game could be the last one of the season. We will continue to monitor players' physical conditi ons and use the best options we have. We must do everything in our power to win Game 4." Those options, however, may not include Elieser Hernandez, a former starter who has transformed into a shutdown reliever this postseason. He pitched in all five games of the previous round against the KT Wiz, piecing together 7 1/3 scoreless innings. Then after five days of rest, Hernandez threw 3 2/3 shutout innings in relief Thursday night. Youm said Hernandez felt stiff Friday morning and he may not be ready for Saturday. "It's likely that we will give him another day off tomorrow. We'll have to check with him again," Youm said. "But if we can force Game 5, he should be available for that game. But the important thing is to win Game 4 first." But Son Ju-young, who thrived out of the bullpen but returned to the rotation for this series, will be available Saturday. Son threw 4 1/3 innings in a start Tuesday and made 93 pitches. When asked if Son will be ready to go for Game 4, Youm nodded and said, "It's possible." W ith Friday's postponement, Koo Ja-wook, the injured captain for the Lions, has received an extra day of rest. Koo suffered a left knee injury in a steal attempt during Game 2 on Tuesday. He flew to Japan the following day for treatment on his ligament damage and rejoined the Lions in Seoul on Friday. Lions manager Park Jin-man said Friday that Koo is able to walk under his own power but is not yet completely pain-free. "He's scheduled to undergo one more test tonight, and we will see how he feels," Park added. "Since he will be in Seoul anyway, he will be with the team at the game tomorrow." During the regular season, Koo led the Lions with a .343 batting average, 33 home runs, 115 RBIs and a 1.044 on-base plus slugging. In Game 1 of this series, Koo batted 3-for-4 with a home run, three RBIs and three runs scored despite playing with nausea and flu-like symptoms. He received an IV shot after the game. With one more day off, Game 4 Denyi Reyes will now go on his regular five days' rest. Should the serie s need a Game 5, the Lions will send right-hander Won Tae-in on five days' rest, too. "I am sure this extra break feels really sweet for those guys," Park said. Source: Yonhap News Agency