“I’m going for a three-game streak!” says 22-year-old Smile Man on getting back to his best! .

“I’m getting ready to go out again today. I have to repay you as much as I am trusted.”

It is August, the game of the season. The determination to tighten the strings of the mind may be more intense within the players than the head coach.

The Lotte Giants will play Game 2 of 메이저놀이터 the weekend series against the KIA Tigers at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 12th.

He won 7-1 the previous day and won two consecutive games in a long time. However, it is still four games apart from the fifth-ranked Doosan Bears. The winning margin is only -4, so there is a long way to go.

Choi Joon-yong was in the process of winning two consecutive games. He pitched in the eighth inning of the Gocheok Kiwoom Heroes match on the 10th and pitched one scoreless inning, followed by the Busan KIA match on the 11th and was responsible for one and two innings without losing a point.

In August, he played 6⅔ innings in 6 games, with one win and one hold and a 1.35 ERA. His fastball speed has also been raised to 150km, and his pitching balance is considered the best this year’s best. The ERA of the season has also been lowered to 1.96. It has been about a year and four months since April last year when he made nine saves for a month.

The 2023 KBO League game between the Lotte Giants and the NC Dinos was held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 1st. Choi Junyong of Lotte.

Choi Joon-yong, who met before the game, smiled, saying, “Honestly, I’m so lucky these days with an ERA.”

On the previous day, Choi Jun-yong took the mound after two outs in the seventh inning when KIA followed one point and led the team to victory by taking charge of 1⅓ innings. However, he gave up a walk against Choi Won-joon, the first batter, after six consecutive change-ups, and was hit by Kim Do-young, facing a two-out full base crisis.

The game ended with Park Chan-ho’s ground ball to first base, but first baseman Jung Hoon also had a large proportion of good defense. After diving catch, Jung Hoon threw himself back in the opposite direction and touched first base. Choi Joon-yong was also seen asking him to focus on the first base cover, saying, “Come in quickly.”

“(Son) Sung-bin asked, ‘What do you want to throw at the first pitch?’ and I asked him to change up. Choi Won-joon is good at hitting the first pitch and I’m on the mound, so I thought everyone would aim for a fastball. He caught the first strike with a change-up, but the game later became too long and twisted a little by giving a walk.”

The 2023 KBO League match between Lotte Giants and KIA Tigers was held at Gwangju KIA Champions Field on the 29th. Lotte Choi Jun-yong is struggling.

Still, he regained his condition in the eighth inning. With a fastball of up to 150km, Na Sung-beom, Choi Hyung-woo, Socrates, the center hitter of KIA, was turned into a three-way retirement. Choi Joon-yong said, “This is because I spent a lot of time with coach Kim Hyun-wook and secured my pitching form. He also emphasized, “I gained confidence because my seniors told me a lot of good things.”

“I’m focusing on shifting my focus by doing shadow pitching every day. I’ve put my arm down and stretched my extension slowly, but in the end, the key to my ball speed and power depends on the movement of the center and the timing of my effort. The extension itself is still more than 2m long and similar, but the pitching form itself has become a little faster. The focus is not on rushing and throwing it, but rather on throwing it behind. The point is to make use of the vertical movement, which is the strength. “

The match between KIA and Lotte was held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 11th. Choi Joon-yong, who blocked the eighth inning without losing a point.

Lotte manager Larry Sutton said after the game the previous day, “Choi Joon-yong was able to save the winning team by playing multi-inning.” “The game was won by one team,” he said with joy. Choi Joon-yong said, “Actually, I wanted to throw one more inning because I was a little anxious in the first inning, but I was glad that you left me one more inning.” “I’m preparing to take the mound again today,” he replied.

Depending on the situation of the economy, he is determined to play three consecutive games. Choi Jun-yong said, “Isn’t it an important time?” I told him to leave it to me because I can throw it. “I will show you a better performance in the rest of the second half,” he said.