Li Dong-ming Reflects on 3 Home Runs Allowed in Loss, Vows to Continue Improving: "Still Have Energy"

(Central News Agency, reporter Xie Jing-wen, New Taipei City, July 7) Fubon Guardians pitcher Li Dong-ming gave up 3 home runs in 4.1 innings in his start on July 5th, resulting in a loss. He said in an interview today that too many misplaced pitches led to extra-base hits and his mechanics felt a bit different. He has been reflecting and looking for the problem. With the potential to break his personal record for most innings pitched in a season, he stated, "I still have energy."

Li Dong-ming has had a brilliant season so far. Starting from April 18th, he recorded 10 consecutive wins in his starts, becoming the fifth local pitcher in history to achieve 10 wins in the first half of the season.

On July 5th, Li Dong-ming started against the Wei Chuan Dragons at Tianmu Baseball Stadium. He pitched 4.1 innings, giving up 7 hits, including 3 home runs, and allowing 4 earned runs, which resulted in a loss and broke his winning streak.

Li Dong-ming told the media today that in the July 5th game, he threw many misplaced pitches. Facing the Dragons, who currently have the best record in the first half of the season, he threw more than 10 misplaced pitches throughout the game, leading to more extra-base hits. He reviewed game footage after the game to identify the problem and found that his pitching mechanics were slightly different from before, which is something he needs to pay attention to going forward.

Regarding the home runs hit by Kuo Tien-hsin, Chu Yu-hsiang, and Chen Tzu-hao, Li Dong-ming said he knew Kuo Tien-hsin was in good form, and the catcher had also reminded him. He admitted that being hit for a home run was a matter of skill, while the at-bats against Chu Yu-hsiang and Chen Tzu-hao were his own mistakes, pitching to locations that were easier to hit, resulting in extra-base hits.

While the outside world is focused on Li Dong-ming's winning streak, he said he doesn't think too much about it. His mindset for every game is to fulfill his responsibility as a starting pitcher, pitch as many innings as possible, and help the team create opportunities to win.

Li Dong-ming has pitched 74.2 innings this season, just 1 inning shy of his personal best of 75.2 innings pitched last year. He stated directly, "I still have energy." He knows that every upcoming game is a challenge. As the season progresses, fatigue is inevitable, opponents are becoming more familiar, and there are many areas where he needs to learn. Maintaining competitiveness depends on how far he can go.

Many players have superstitions when on a winning streak or challenging records, such as not shaving or wearing the same clothes. Li Dong-ming said he doesn't have such habits, but he has noticed that he seems to pitch particularly poorly at Tianmu Baseball Stadium. He joked, "Maybe I need to get more familiar with it." Li Dong-ming's career record at Tianmu Baseball Stadium is 3 losses with an ERA of 8.10. (Editor: Li Hsi-chang) 1150707

Stand with facts, your every donation is a force to protect the freedom of the press.

Download the Central News Agency "One-Stop News" APP for real-time updates.

The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or used without authorization.