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| ▲ Yang Hyun-jong, who is participating in the MLB Texas Rangers’ Spring Camp as an invited player, is throwing a ball in the bullpen on the 26th of last month (Korean time), three days after joining the training.
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Left-handed pitcher Yang Hyeon-jong (33, Texas Rangers)’s first demonstration game in the US Professional Baseball (MLB) attracts more attention as it is the stage for verifying the performance of a bunch of Texas starting pitching candidates.
On the 8th (Korean time), Yang Hyun-jong will appear in a demonstration game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the winner of last year’s World Series, at the Surprise Stadium in Surprise, Arizona, USA.
It has been 16 days since he signed a split contract with Texas (a contract with a different salary when in the major leagues and when in the minors) and boarded a flight to the United States on the 20th of last month.
According to the MLB Secretariat’s new coronavirus infection (Corona 19) quarantine regulations, Yang Hyeon-jong joined the Texas Spring Camp on February 24 after being quarantined for four days and threw them in the bullpen twice. Also, on the 4th of this month, he finished playing live pitching with a batter and prepared for a real match.
In the pitcher management plan announced by the Texas club on the 8th, Yang Hyun-jong will appear after Mike Poltinevic, Jordan Lyles, Kyle Cody, and Korean Dane Dunning. All five are Texas starters this year, and four are right-handed pitchers except for Yang Hyun-jong.
In the match that will be played in 8 innings, Poltinevic, Cody, and Dunning throw 2 innings each. Ryles and Yang Hyun-jong are in charge of one inning.
Texas are looking for pitchers to start with, with only three starters, Kyle Gibson, Arihara Gohei, and Poltinevic.
Thanks to the consistency and durability left by the Korean professional baseball, Yang Hyun-jong is evaluated as a’inning eater’ and a pitcher who can play both starting and bullpen at the same time.
‘Swingman’ Yang Hyeon-jong occupies a major part in Texas’ plan to manage the mound this year in a creative way, such as the sixth starting system or the introduction of two starting pitchers.
As a bullpen pitcher, Hyeon-jong Yang is expected to increase the number of pitches after verifying his ability to throw shortly as a bullpen pitcher and stand on the mound as a starter in the next turn.
If the quick ball as well as the change-up and the slider’s ability to control the game work in the demonstration game, the possibility of Yang Hyun-jong becoming the opening game roster increases.
On the Texas club’s depth chart, Yang Hyeon-jong, number 68, is currently classified as a bullpen pitcher. Tall left-handed pitcher Taylor Heun, who is considered a starting resource, started on the 7th in a demonstration game against the Arizona Diamondbacks and blocked two innings with no hits. yunhap news
Gyeongsang Ilbo, KSILBO