S. Korea manager pleased with injury-free training camp for WBC

▲ South Korea manager Lee Kang-chul (C) watches his pitchers during a practice session for the World Baseball Classic at Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 27, 2023. (Yonhap)

▲ South Korean pitcher Ko Young-pyo runs on the field after a bullpen session for the World Baseball Classic at Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 27, 2023. (Yonhap)

▲ South Korean pitcher Koo Chang-mo prepares for a bullpen session for the World Baseball Classic at Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 27, 2023. (Yonhap)

▲ South Korean outfielder Lee Jung-hoo takes a batting practice for the World Baseball Classic at Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 27, 2023. (Yonhap)

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S. Korea manager pleased with injury-free training camp for WBC

TUCSON, United States, Feb. 27 (Yonhap) -- Wrapping up a two-week training camp in Arizona ahead of the World Baseball Classic (WBC), South Korea manager Lee Kang-chul said Monday he was pleased to head home with his entire squad healthy.

South Korea saw one scrimmage postponed and another canceled due to inclement weather, and the team battled through unseasonably cold and windy conditions in the dessert. Addressing the media after the final day of camp at Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Lee acknowledged those challenges.

But at the end of the day, everyone will be going home in one piece.

"The most important thing is we're all returning home healthy," Lee said. "Pitchers threw on the side the last couple of days, and it was encouraging to see them make progress. Position players have been able to stay sharp, and I am satisfied with that as well."

Lee and his team are due back in Seoul early Wednesday. They will be joined by the team's only two major leaguers, Kim Ha-seong of the San Diego Padres and Tommy Edman of the St. Louis Cardinals, who have been training with their respective clubs and are scheduled to land in South Korea on Wednesday.

The first full squad workout is scheduled for Thursday at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. South Korea will then play a scrimmage against the SSG Landers of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) at 6 p.m. Friday at the dome.

The team will fly to Osaka on Saturday. Another day of training awaits South Korea on Sunday, followed by official pre-WBC exhibitions against Japanese clubs: the Orix Buffaloes next Monday and the Hanshin Tigers the following day.

South Korea's first Pool B game is against Australia at noon March 9.

Lee said he will have a better idea of the roles for his 15 pitchers after Friday's scrimmage. He wants all 15 of them to take the mound then, and under a prior agreement with the Landers, a few national team members will pitch for the KBO club and face national team hitters.

"Those who will start at the WBC could go three to four innings in that game," Lee said. "We will split them up in that game and decide who's going to pitch in what situations at the WBC before we travel to Japan."

Lee, a former All-Star pitcher and pitching coach, has previously said he felt the pitchers had a lot more work to do than the hitters to get ready for the WBC. A few hurlers have spoken about their problems adjusting to the official WBC ball, which is slicker and has lower seams than the KBO ball.

Lee said he was optimistic that his pitchers will be where they need to be when the WBC rolls around.

"The players won't say it, but I can see from the way they train that they have a lot of pride representing the country," Lee said. "Some pitchers threw back-to-back days probably because they felt they needed more work. Those who've been lagging behind volunteered to throw on the side. They looked pretty good."

Because the Arizona camp was held without Kim and Edman, Lee said he will only settle on his lineup after playing in games with the two big leaguers in action.

That will only come after playing the Buffaloes and the Tigers, because Kim and Edman aren't eligible for Friday's unofficial scrimmage, per tournament rules.

"Depending on opposing starting pitchers, we may go left-right-left-right with our batters," Lee said.

Of 15 position players, six bat right-handed and eight bat left-handed. Edman is the only switch hitter.

After Australia, South Korea will also face Japan, the Czech Republic and China in Pool B, with all games at Tokyo Dome.

After round-robin play, the top two nations will move on to the quarterfinals up against a team from Pool A. Those quarterfinal games will also be at Tokyo Dome.

LoanDepot Park, home of the Miami Marlins, will host the semifinals and the final.

South Korea finished third at the inaugural WBC in 2006 and ranked second to Japan three years later. It crashed out of the opening round in the next two iterations, in 2013 and 2017.

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