In 2022, SSG was a team with the ‘energy of the universe’. And it was fully worthy of summoning that ‘energy of the universe.’ The players maintained concentration until the end of the game. I was armed with the confidence that I could win even if I was behind. The opposing teams often got tired of that ‘spirit’ and left. The more I won, the stronger my spirit became. No matter what anyone says, 2022 was the year of SSG.토토사이트
SSG was second in the league in Pythagorean winning percentage based on the 2022 goals-run model with 0.573. There was quite a big difference from LG (.653), which ranked first in the league. However, the actual winning percentage was 0.629, which was much higher than the Pythagorean winning percentage. It was largely thanks to their strong performance in the overtime match where it was difficult to determine which team would win because the game was tied by 1-2 points and the team had to endure with their basic stamina. With that advantage, they were able to beat LG’s big chase at the end of the season and take first place.
Last year, SSG had a whopping 63 wins within a 2-point gap, which can be considered a close game. It was 43.8% of the entire game. In other words, SSG was a ‘team worth playing’ in many of the games until the very end. However, in these 63 games, he recorded 45 wins (.714). The opposing team’s complaint, “It was worth a try, but we lost at the end of the game,” was not for nothing. In the overtime match, they also exceeded the .700 winning percentage with 10 wins, 4 losses, and 4 draws (.714). The strong team did not win. It was a strong team that won. SSG was that kind of team.
Indicators such as the 1-point game winning percentage ultimately converge to the team’s overall season winning percentage. Considering this, this unusually high win rate can be interpreted as an indicator that the team had a bit of luck while showing off its potential. The same was true for the season elements. Just like in the opening series with NC, which started the miracle of 10 consecutive wins, there was a bit of luck in which key players on the opposing team suffered injuries. The existing proposition that “winning the Korean Series is only possible when luck is added to skill” was proven once again.
This cosmic energy seemed to follow SSG until the middle of this season. It wasn’t as lucky as last year, but it was still strong in a close game. Even when the batting lineup was not good, the mound somehow maintained the lead, and on days when the mound was a little unstable, baseball was played in which the opponent was hit with a home run. Opposing runners were strangely erased in many cases. However, voices of concern also emerged during this process. If Lee Woon leaves the team, the question was, ‘What countermeasures does the team have?’
In fact, SSG’s on-base percentage this season was the highest in the league. Closer Seo Jin-yong is a player who symbolizes this. However, there is also a process of returning to the season average. In other words, the residual base disposal rate could not continue to be this high. It was a very natural calculation that the number of runs conceded would increase. The batting line’s luck gradually faded as injuries continued to appear. Although they are still strong in close combat, as the team’s power decreases, there are many cases where they are completely destroyed. It is difficult for luck to intervene in such games.
SSG’s Pythagorean winning percentage this year is only 0.469. It is natural that more goals were conceded (536 points) than scored (504 points). Even in this situation, recording an actual win rate of over 50% means that SSG still had the ‘spirit of the universe’ for a while. I haven’t had that kind of luck lately. The team’s weaknesses are being clearly revealed, and as the results worsen, it appears that the players no longer believe in their own strength. Anyone can see that he looks nervous. In the game against Incheon KIA on the 3rd, there was a reversal, and none of the next six batters reached base and all retired with poor hits. This is the reality of SSG now.
SSG has remained at 10 wins and 16 losses since August. The team’s average ERA during this period was 5.36, ranking 9th in the league. The team OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) is 0.681, ranking 8th in the league. Both pitching and hitting indicators are at the bottom of the league. Since the ‘energy of the universe’ has disappeared, there is no way the team will perform well. Fortunately, when foreign pitchers and Kim Kwang-hyun came out, they won 1-2 games each, so the losing streak didn’t get very long, but the winning streak wasn’t long either. The flow is sluggish, and the players are exhausted. New faces are rarely seen, on the bench or in the second team.
SSG won by 1 point in all three games against KIA held in Gwangju from June 6th to 8th. Inside KIA, there was a saying that it was a “draining defeat.” However, the Incheon KIA series from September 1 to 3 was different. At the same time as the mound collapsed miserably, the batting lineup also fell silent and lost three games. It was a difference in performance that made it difficult for luck to intervene. Of course, KIA’s power may have become stronger than at the time, but it can also be seen as a symbol of SSG, which fell in just two to three months.
More crashes await in 2019. Mathematically speaking, it is true. At the time, SK was ahead of 2nd place Doosan by a large margin, but eventually overturned and fell to the playoffs. He was a victim of a historic race. However, SK was not this weak at that time. Although the batting line suffered from severe slump, the starting lineup and winning team were solid. Although it seems like they have fallen endlessly since August, they are still a team that has a winning percentage of around .500 (.488). It may be rude to compare it to SSG now.
SSG now is no better than SK, which was shabby at the time. Selection is uneven. I can’t remember the last time I won a game with 4 or 5 starters. The batting line is weak. Since August 15th, SSG has lost all of the 7 games in which they were behind by the 5th inning, without exception. If you don’t play from the beginning, you won’t be able to play until the end. The bullpen is anxious about a 1-2 point lead. Since August 15th, SSG has lost as many as six times. The most in the league. They only managed to secure 4 wins in the 7 games that went into the 5th inning.
The coaching staff was hurriedly reorganized on the 3rd, but this also brings a sigh of relief. The fact that key players have not been able to find their skills throughout the season is not only a problem for the players, but it is also clearly a big problem for the coaches. If we had acknowledged that, we should have reformed sooner. Most of the coaches who came through the reorganization in September do not have much first-team experience. I cannot be confident that I accurately understand the recent strengths and weaknesses of first-team players. They are not problem solvers. In the end, it’s all about the mood again. Because otherwise there is nothing to say.
Team performance may improve slightly if the atmosphere changes, but that does not guarantee sustainable team success. The coaching staff and front office either don’t know that the ‘energy of the universe’ has left the team long ago, or they try to ignore it. Anything is a problem. Reorganization begins with facing that reality. There is no crazy parent group that will press the ‘rebuild button’ instead of spending this money and telling you to do it comfortably.
2019 remains a painful memory in the club’s history, but the bigger problem is that it did not acknowledge that the party at the time was over. Still, it was the winning team of the 2018 Korean Series. In 2019, the team won 88 games in the regular season. Even if the ace’s strength is lost, they are optimistic that with this level of strength, they will be able to advance to the postseason next season. It was full of groundless imagination, and some of the front office’s claims pointing out problems were pushed back. There were already signs of one kind of rift within the team, but they were ignored.
Such carelessness led to the decline of the team along with the aging of the players. In 2020, SK fell to 9th place and then disappeared into history. From the beginning of the season, problems arose out of control, and the unprepared team collapsed without being able to stretch themselves properly. What is important for SSG now is not to repeat such pain. Could the defeat on September 3 be the day that dramatically revives the outlook for 2023 and 2024 and beyond? These are scraps that I will take out again in a month to see if I can re-set the banquet table that has already ended. There isn’t much time.