NC ‘1.9BB per 9 innings’ control master left-hander blitz recruitment without Gu Chang-mo, becoming a ‘savior’ following ‘university alumnus’ Luchinski

The NC Dinos, who are betting their lives on advancing into the postseason, eventually took out the card of replacing foreign pitchers. Can the ‘left-handed savior’, who is supposed to fill the starting lineup with holes, make a soft landing on the Korean stage?

On the 4th, NC announced that it “requested the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) to publicize a waiver for Widener and recruited pitcher Tanner Paul Tully (29, Tanner Paul Tully) as a substitute foreign player.” The terms of the contract are a total of 200,000 dollars (KRW 262 million, an annual salary of 150,000 dollars, and an option of 50,000 dollars).

Widener, whose expulsion decision was made this time, recorded 4 wins, 2 losses and an ERA of 4.52 in 11 games this season. He showed good form in spring camp, but was unable to join the opening roster due to a herniated disc. After twists and turns, he made a comeback against Doosan in Changwon on May 30th, and he made the coaching staff suffer from headaches with his ups and downs.

In the return game, Widener, who pitched 6 innings with 2 hits, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts and no runs, collapsed with 9 runs in the next game. During the month of July, in four appearances, he pitched a roller coaster for 4⅓ innings, 6 innings, 4 innings, and 6 innings. In a phone call with Star News, Lim Seon-nam, NC general manager, said, “I couldn’t show the image I saw at the camp consistently, and there were ups and downs.” We had opinions, and after discussion, the final decision was made.”

In the last game (against Sajik Lotte on the 2nd), 7 innings, 1 run, Quality Start Plus (7 innings or more, 3 earned runs or less), Widener, who left the Korean stage despite a good fight, and what kind of player is Tanner, who came as a replacement? Maybe
Who is Tanner?

Born in 1994, Tanner is a left-handed pitcher with the physical condition of 188cm and 92kg. Tanner, who graduated from Ohio State University in the United States, is an alumnus of former NC ace Drew Luchinski (35), and in fact, Tanner also said, “I heard a story (about KBO) from Luchinski.” From 2019 to last year, Luchinski played for NC, recording a career of 53 wins and an average ERA of 3.06, especially in 2020, leading the team’s combined championship.

Tanner entered the professional stage after being selected in the 26th round by the Cleveland Indians (now the Guardians) in the 2016 draft. Tanner, who stepped on the Major League (MLB) stage last year, recorded an average ERA of 6.00 without winning or losing in three major league games. In the minor leagues, he pitched in 159 games and recorded an average ERA of 4.18 with a record of 44 wins and 51 losses.

Tanner appeared as a starter for most of his career minor league appearances (131 games). It can be seen that he is a professionally developed player as a starter. He also continued his career in good health, with no major injuries during his seven years in the minors. In a word, it can be said that it is a ‘thick-bones’ resource as a starter.

The NC club explained about Tanner, “He throws a fastball with a speed of 144 to 148 km per hour, along with a slider, changeup, and curve ball.” In his most recent appearance (on the 28th of last month), he showed an average fastball of 143.5 km and a maximum of 147.3 km. An official familiar with American baseball said, “There was no competitiveness in the fastball in the United States,” and analyzed, “It may not be a big disadvantage in the KBO league, where there are relatively few fastballs.”

However, his control is excellent. He gave up 164 walks in 787⅓ innings of his minor league career, a meager 1.9 per 9 innings. Even in the last two years he’s been in decent form with 2.2 walks per 9 innings. Considering that his predecessor, Widener, had ups and downs in the first pitch, this is the part where NC’s recruitment point can be known.

Among his breaking pitches, his slider is excellent. An official in the baseball world said, “It is a decision ball with a high speed of 120 km per hour, a good pitch, and a wide range of movement left and right,” and mentioned that “it can be particularly powerful for left-handed hitters.”
NC, who wanted to select a left-hander with an immediate sense of power, found the perfect fit

NC is suffering from a series of departures of starting pitchers this year. Ace Eric Peddy (30) is making a big success with 14 wins and 3 losses with an ERA of 2.10, but confusion continues in the order after that. Widener pitched for only two months before being kicked out, and Shin Min-hyeok (24) and Song Myung-ki (23) have yet to get on track. Right-hander Lee Yong-jun (21), who caused a sensation in the early stages, is also currently in the 2nd team.

In particular, the left-handed selection is in a state of ‘annihilation’. Koo Chang-mo (26), who was expected to play as the first starter in the country, was diagnosed with a stress fracture of the ulna in his left arm after facing only one hitter in the match against LG in Jamsil on June 2. His specific return schedule has not been set, so he is only undergoing repeated reexaminations. Choi Seong-yeong (26), who replaced him, was also diagnosed with an orbital fracture after being hit in the face by a ball in the game against LG in Changwon on June 20, and only recently returned to the actual field. Other than that, Jeong Gu-beom (23) is the only one who has appeared as a starter in the last two games.

General manager Lim said, “The starting lineup has a lot of holes, but I thought that having a left-handed pitcher would be more balanced.” He said, “Choi Seong-young’s return is not far, but Koo Chang-mo is taking time, and in the reality of the KBO league, I thought having a left-handed starter would be helpful.”

It is also a point that he continued to pitch in the minor leagues until recently. General manager Lim said, “There was a reason for replacing Widener, so I had to prioritize his ability to digest innings. That’s why I signed with Tanner, who has consistently been a starter in the minor leagues.” Considering that Aaron Wilkerson (34) of the Lotte Giants, a similar case, started on the mound eight days after signing the contract, Tanner is expected to pitch at the same time.

Contrary to the expectation that NC will be in the lower ranks this season, NC is doing well until August. As of the 4th, NC is in 4th place with a season win rate of 0.517 (46 wins, 43 losses, 1 draw). NC, which stayed in the middle of the season at the beginning of the season, rose to the top 3 with a 5-game winning streak in mid-June. However, at the end of the same month amid a chain of departures from the starters, including Koo Chang-mo, they suffered five consecutive losses twice. Since then, it has been going back and forth between 3rd and 5th amidst the mid-level chaos.꽁머니지급

NC, which had not advanced to the postseason for two years after winning the 2020 combined championship, seized a golden opportunity this year and made a bold decision. General manager Lim added, “If we sign up after August 15th, we cannot register (in the postseason), so we decided that day as the deadline.”

Tanner expressed his determination through the club, saying, “My goal is to win the NC Dinos. I want to show everyone on the team, including myself, doing their best in each game in good health.” In order to be like his words, Tanner himself has to do well so that things can go smoothly.