Seoul: In need of some wins while mired in last place in South Korean baseball, the Kiwoom Heroes have instead chosen to stick to their plan and prioritize the long-term health of their players. The Heroes removed their No. 1 starter Kenny Rosenberg from their active roster Wednesday, a day after the American left-hander made his 11th start of the season.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Rosenberg has been the lone bright spot in the otherwise thin starting rotation for the Heroes. In his first Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season, Rosenberg has gone 3-4 with a 3.71 ERA. He has had seven outings in which he was charged with two or fewer earned runs and has thrown at least five innings in 10 of his 11 starts. His fielding independent pitching (FIP) of 3.12 suggests Rosenberg has been a tad unlucky as well.
In recent years, the Heroes have given their starting pitchers midseason breathers, so that they can stay fresh for the latter portion of the season. Even though the Heroes are not close to contending for a postseason trip this year-at 14-36-0 (wins-losses-ties), they're already 10.5 games out of the final postseason spot-manager Hong Won-ki said Wednesday he wasn't going to deviate from his plan to rest Rosenberg.
"He is a bit fatigued at the moment, and we've known all along we would give him some rest at this point in the season," Hong told reporters before the Heroes hosted the Samsung Lions at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. "We're in a tough spot as a team. But if Rosenberg grows more tired, he will be at a bigger risk for injury. We didn't want that to happen."
After starting Tuesday, Rosenberg would have been lined up to make his next appearance Sunday. Once a player is removed from the active roster in the KBO, he must be held out for at least 10 days. Asked how he will fill Rosenberg's spot in the rotation, Hong said, "I will think about that later."
"We're having issues with our pitching," said Hong, who has been cycling through multiple pitchers for the final three spots in the rotation beyond Rosenberg and No. 2 starter Ha Yeong-min.