Tigers manager counting on left-handed relievers to bounce back

GWANGJU, Oct. 29 (Yonhap) -- Kia Tigers manager Lee Bum-ho said Thursday he was counting on his two key left-handed relievers to regain their form in the ongoing South Korean baseball postseason series against the Samsung Lions.

With the Lions doling out a left-heavy lineup in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason, led by the 100-RBI trio of Koo Ja-wook, Lewin Diaz and Choi Hyoung-woo, the Tigers have precious few southpaw options to deal with them in high-leverage spots in late innings.

Lee Eui-lee pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings to earn a relief win in a 5-1 win in Game 1 on Monday, but failed to record an out in Game 2 the following day, when he issued two walks and hit a batter as the Tigers fell 8-3.

Meanwhile, another left-hander, Kwak Do-gyu, has not been trusted in big spots despite his solid regular season, with Lee Bum-ho dropping hints throughout the postseason that the 22-year-old pitcher is not 100 percent physically.

The manager also acknowledged putting a right-hander against Koo, Diaz and Choi with runners on base is not ideal.

"I don't think we can keep those guys in check unless we use Do-gyu and Eui-lee," Lee Bum-ho said in his pregame media session at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field in the southwestern city of Gwangju. "I don't think any of our right-handers in the bullpen would be good enough to handle the heart of their lineup. We need Do-gyu and Eui-lee to rise to the occasion to win games."

Ideally, if Thursday's starter, Keisho Shirakawa, pitches as well as he did in his previous postseason game, then the manager will not have to worry as much about his bullpen usage.

In the clinching Game 3 of the previous series against the LG Twins on Oct. 20, Shirakawa threw five innings of one-run ball and struck out nine batters.

"We need him to cover at least five innings and keep the damage to about three runs," Lee said. "He has had enough rest since his last outing, and so I don't think velocity will be an issue. But you just never know. We will have a handful of guys ready in the bullpen in the early innings."