Youm Kyoung-youb, left, manager of LG Twins, watches team's game against Doosan Bears held at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul, Sunday. Yonhap
The LG Twins replaced their struggling starter Yonny Chirinos with a new pitcher, Yacksel Rios, last week, but manager Youm Kyoung-youb plans to put the Puerto Rican hurler in the bullpen rather than the starting rotation.
For one, Rios barely has starting experience in the upper minors or in the majors. Also, the Twins could use a hard-throwing reliever in a bullpen that mostly has soft tossers who rely on guile.
Rios was added to the roster before Wednesday's game against the SSG Landers at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul, and Youm said the new pitcher will be ready to go right away.
"He looked good," Youm said when asked about Rios' recent bullpen sessions in his pregame media availability. "We will use him in high-leverage situations. He will also be the first guy out of the bullpen to eat up innings when our starter gets knocked around early."
