(LEAD) Downtrodden baseball club wraps up preseason without victory

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SUWON, South Korea, March 20 (Yonhap) -- This isn't exactly how the KT Wiz wanted to prepare for the new South Korean baseball season.

The Wiz, the youngest Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) franchise, now in their fifth year, concluded the preseason on Wednesday without a victory. The regular season begins Saturday.

They had one tie and five losses prior to Wednesday's home game against the LG Twins at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, 45 kilometers south of Seoul. The game was halted once in the bottom of the fourth inning due to rain and was called off in the bottom fifth with the Wiz trailing 6-1.

The Wiz became the first team since the now-defunct Ssangbangwool Raiders in 1998 to fail to win a preseason game. The Raiders lost all seven games that year.

The Wiz are into their third manager already, with long-time coach Lee Kang-chul being asked to guide the team to the postseason for the first time. The Wiz ranked dead last among 10 teams in each of their first three seasons and moved up to ninth place in 2018.

The Wiz had done well in recent preseasons, only to see what good vibes they'd created in March dissipate by April or May.

In both 2017 and 2018, they posted the best record in preseason, but finished 10th and ninth in the regular season.

They have shown nothing to indicate they will be better in the regular season than in the preseason.

With a 5.92 ERA, they were the worst pitching team and had the fewest strikeouts at 44.

One of their new pitching acquisitions, Raul Alcantara, missed the entire preseason with a shoulder injury. The other new import, William Cuevas, got rocked for nine hits in 4 1/3 innings against the Samsung Lions in his lone spring start on March 12.

Rhee Dae-eun, a former Chicago Cubs prospect and the No. 1 overall pick at last year's KBO draft, allowed three earned runs on five hits and four walks in four innings Wednesday. In his previous start on Thursday, Rhee served up nine hits and one walk for five earned runs in four frames.

Kim Jae-yoon, named the team's closer, allowed three extra-base hits, including a homer, in one inning of relief work after Rhee Wednesday.

Before the game, manager Lee said he still liked the way his players were battling and added that preseason results mean little to him.

"We're getting better and better," he said. "I know we were the best team in the past two preseasons. If you play too well in spring, it just puts that much pressure on you going into the regular season."

Rhee threw 95 pitches, including 47 in the second inning alone. He shrugged off another rocky outing and said he only saw his preseason starts as opportunities to try out different pitches.

He offered five different pitches at the Twins on Wednesday: four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, forkball, curveball and slider.

"I regarded these games as part of the process, no matter how many runs I gave up," said Rhee, who will turn 30 on Opening Day. "I am confident I can start pitching better once the regular season gets under way."

The defending champion SK Wyverns finished first in the preseason at 5-2-1 (wins-losses-ties). Those five wins came in their last five games, including a 1-0 shutout of the Doosan Bears on Wednesday. New starter Brock Dykxhoorn tossed five shutout innings and allowed just one earned run on three hits in nine innings of work across two preseason starts.

The Kiwoom Heroes and the Hanwha Eagles, who met in the playoffs a year ago, tied for second place at 5-3.

jeeho@yna.co.kr
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