B. Kim Tries to Submerge into Four-men Rotation

As a season opener, Arizona Diamondbacks will have a series of games against L.A. Dodgers for three days starting on April 1 in its hometown. Then, from April 5th, the team will move over to Colorado. This is the season first sortie of Byung Hyun Kim. More encouraging is the fact that Kim takes mound in the 4th game for the Diamondbacks.

Taking on the Dodgers, Randy Johnson, Curt Shilling and Elmer Dessens will take turns in taking mound for the Diamondbacks. Originally, John Patterson was supposed to take on Colorado Rockies. But, in the spring outing, he performed poor, and was 1-2 with 5.87 ERA. Thus, he was removed from the four-men rotation. Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly said, however, "It does not mean that Kim was put into the rotation." If Kim pitches well, however, he will secure his spot in it.

The discrepancy in 4th and 5th in rotation means a huge difference in various respects. For pitchers up to the top 4 positions in the rotation, it is guaranteed that they will pitch after four days of rest. But the player in the 5th may pitch in 9 to 10 days if a game is canceled or a holiday falls in-between. When the interval lasts long, the pitcher sometimes takes mound as reliever. In fact, he becomes a "handyman" switching his position on a case-by-case basis.

Kim was a reliever last year. This year, however, he shot up to the starting position. All stemmed from his impressive performance this spring. During 22 innings, he gave up 8 runs (7 earned) and won twice with 2.86 ERA. Against San Francisco Giants yesterday, he struck out four in five innings, while giving up only one score, four hits and one walk. With his handsome performance, Diamondbacks won an 8-2 victory against Giants.

Listening to the "rotation news," his colleagues congratulated him. Nonetheless, Kim himself did not feel much emotion. He just feels that "I`m now in the rotation." Kim said, "I just feel more comfortable than pitching as a reliever. I will make something out of this opportunity."

With Kim`s landing in the rotation roster, more and more people are wondering which of the two, Park or Kim, would snatch up more wins. From the start, Chan Ho Park has secured his position as start, and has won 89 games in 246 with 4.02 ERA.

After joining the Diamondbacks, Kim played as a reliever. Out of 236 games, he won 20 and saved 70 with 3.21 ERA. Considering the young age of Kim, he could succeed in recording more wins than Park, if he stays in the rotation.

Sang-Soo Kim ssoo@donga.com