Already 150 km/h… SSG’s Expectations for the New Foreign Dugger are Rising
Last year, the SSG Landers starting lineup had the lowest ERA (4.53) among the 10 professional baseball teams.
The biggest cause was the injury of a foreign pitcher.
Eni Romero was released without pitching a single game due to shoulder pain, and Kirk McCarty, who played the role of ace, played only 130 innings due to frequent injuries.
SSG hopes that foreign pitchers Robert Dugger and Roenis Elias will form a strong first to third starting lineup along with native ace Kim Gwang-hyun in the 2024 season.
First of all, I saw hope in spring camp. https://start.me/w/7X0Kwp
In particular, attention is focused on the new foreign pitcher, Dugger.
On the 3rd, Dugger took the mound in an evaluation game against the Weizhuan Dragons in Taiwan and pitched 2⅔ innings, allowing 1 hit, no runs, 1 walk, and 2 strikeouts.
The maximum speed of the fastball was 150 km/h and the minimum was 146 km/h.
He filled 2⅔ innings with 38 balls, using an appropriate mix of breaking balls such as curves, sliders, and changeups.
Dugger said through the club, “I’m in good shape.
I used a variety of pitches, but I was satisfied with the movement of the fastball, and the curve was where I wanted it to be,” and added, “I will improve my condition by increasing the number of pitches in the exhibition game.”
Elias, who took the mound as a starter, also overpowered the ‘Taiwan Professional Baseball defending champion’ Weizhuan’s batting lineup with no hits, no runs, and one walk in two innings.
SSG coach Lee Soong-yong was satisfied, saying, “We checked the condition of the two foreign starting pitchers well.”
Dugger’s major league career in American professional baseball is not flashy, with a total of 27 games (13 starts), 7 losses, and an ERA of 7.17.
However, he continued to pitch as a starter in the minor leagues.
Dugger’s career minor league records are 154 games (127 as a starter), 39 wins, 42 losses, 4 saves, and an ERA of 4.21.
His Triple A career record is 75 games, 15 wins, 22 losses, and an ERA of 5.25. https://hpad.dataone.org/s/EHUy93FcQp
In 2023, he did not have any luck with 7 wins and 10 losses, but he ranked first in ERA (4.31) and strikeouts (143) in the Triple A Pacific League.
SSG introduced, “Dugger has abundant starting experience and stable game management skills,” and “is a complete starting pitcher with no major weaknesses.”
Dugger early on increased his fastball speed to 150 km/h and also showed off a ‘deception move’ to hide the ball.
SSG renewed the contract with Elias, who was hired as a replacement for Romero last year, noting that he showed better performance in the second half (4 wins, 3 losses, ERA 3.52) than in the first half (4 wins, 3 losses, ERA 4.02).
Kwang-Hyun Kim is working hard, saying, “I feel like I wasted the answers in 2023 (9 wins, 8 losses, ERA 3.53).”
SSG looks at Dugger and hopes to establish the top 1 to 3 starters among the 10 clubs.
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