Set-up man Chung Chul-won (24) has been recalled by the Doosan Bears to the first team after being suspended for drinking during an international tournament, and Lee Young-ha (26) has been recalled three days after signing a contract.
Doosan made a change to its roster ahead of its upcoming 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League game against KT Wiz at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on Wednesday. The first change was the promotion of Lee Young-ha to the first team. Doosan, which had vacated a roster spot the day before, filled it with Lee Young-ha.
Earlier, Lee was acquitted of charges of special assault, coercion, and extortion by the Criminal Division 4 (Deputy Chief Judge Jung Geum-young) at a sentencing hearing held at the Seoul Western District Court on March 31. He had been accused of committing school violence against his juniors at Sunlin Internet High School and was exonerated after nine months.
Doosan promptly signed Lee on the same day. They agreed to a salary of 120 million won, 40 million won less than last year (160 million won). The club also promised to cover four months of salary from February to May. This shows both expectation and consideration for Lee Young-ha.
Lee, who had been working out as an individual, officially joined the team on Nov. 1. The same day, he pitched a perfect eighth inning as the team’s fifth pitcher in a 1-9 home game against the Hanwha Eagles in the Futures (second division) League at Bears Park in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province. His fastball reached a maximum speed of 149 kilometers per hour.
After signing Lee Young-ha earlier, Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop, 47, said, “I think it will take a month or two to prepare him as a starter because we haven’t been together since spring training. I don’t have enough time this season to prepare him as a starter,” Lee said, adding, “If he returns now, I think he should return to relief.” As such, Lee is likely to remain in the bullpen for the time being after his call-up to the first team.
Lee is primarily a starter, but he also has plenty of bullpen experience. In 2020, he struggled as a starter in the first half of the year (5.62 ERA), but moved to the closer’s role in the second half and posted a 2.96 ERA with six saves. In 2021, he had a lower ERA of 1.60 out of the bullpen.안전놀이터
Doosan has an open spot in the bullpen. Set-up man Chung Chul-won was designated for assignment the day before. The club said it was a sign of self-restraint. Earlier, he was suspected of drinking alcohol with Ansan Technical High School senior Kim Kwang-hyun (35-SSG) during the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in March, and eventually bowed his head, saying it was “inexcusable and frivolous behavior.”
Last year’s rookie of the year, Chung had appeared in 24 games this year, posting a 4-2 record with seven holds and a 4.01 ERA. Although his ERA is high, it was in the 2-run range until last month’s game against Jamsil Samsung Electronics (⅓ inning, 2 hits, 2 walks, 5 runs). Park Chi-guk (1⅔ innings) and Hong Gun-hee (1⅓ innings) pitched multiple innings to protect the lead on March 31, when Jung Chul-won was suspended.