After nearly four weeks without a start, LG Twins foreign pitcher Casey Kelly tasted victory with an ‘ace’ performance.
LG improved to 65-2 with a 3-1 home win over the Lotte Giants in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League on Thursday at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul.먹튀검증
Kelly, who secured the win in a tight pitching battle, pitched six innings of three-hit ball, walking one and striking out five to earn his eighth win of the season. It was his first win in 27 days since a road loss to the Doosan Bears on April 28. It was Kelly’s first no-hitter of the season, and it was backed by a steady delivery that more than doubled his strikeouts (58) to balls (27).
After working out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the first inning, Kelly settled down in the top of the second and shut down the Lotte bats with a triple play in the top of the fifth and sixth innings. In between, the bats scored three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to give Kelly the win, and the bullpen took over in the top of the seventh to minimize the damage and preserve the lead.
LG manager Yoon Kyung-yeop, who had been worried about Kelly, praised the pitcher, saying, “In the battle for the starting job, Kelly did a good enough job in the starting role and set the stage for the victory.”
After the game, Kelly said, “Every time I go out to play, I aim to help the team win. “Every time I go out there, I go out there with the goal of helping the team win. I wanted to help the team win, and I’m glad I was able to do that.”
The key to his performance was his changeup, which he only threw eight times out of 85 pitches that day, but he said it worked just the way he wanted it to. His catcher, Dong-won Park, described his changeup as having a “good fall”.
“I was confident in my changeup and threw it in the right count,” Kelly said, “and I think that’s why I was able to have a good game because I was aggressive and competed with the hitters.”
After a rough start to the season, Kelly’s only goal for the rest of the season is to help the team win. “The team is doing very well, and I want to help them win every time I go out there,” he said.