‘Former Samsung’ Lively perpetuates reverse export myth
Ben Lively (32, Cleveland Guardians), formerly of the Samsung Lions of the KBO, has reached the 10-win plateau in Major League Baseball (MLB).
Lively started the 2024 MLB regular season opener against the Baltimore Orioles at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio, on Sunday (Feb. 2) and pitched six innings of four-hit ball, allowing two runs on four hits (one home run) with one walk and four strikeouts. Cleveland defeated Baltimore, 10-3, behind an offense that pounded out 10 runs on 11 hits, and Lively picked up his 10th win of the season.
It was a shaky start. Lively got into scoring position in the top of the first inning when Baltimore leadoff hitter Colton Kauser doubled. He got Adley Rutchman to fly out to center field, but couldn’t get it past Gunner Henderson and allowed a timely double. He then got Anthony Santander to fly out to left field and Ryan O’Hearn to ground out to second base to end the first inning without further damage.
After surviving the first inning, Lively quickly picked up the pace. After the Cleveland offense cut the deficit to 2-1 in the bottom of the first, Lively responded with a strikeout, groundout, and strikeout to end the inning. In the top of the third, he struck out leadoff hitter Jackson Halladay and gave up a walk to Kauser, but got Lurchman to fly out to end the inning.
In the bottom of the third, Cleveland extended its lead to 5-1 on a three-run homer by David Frey. Lively gave up a solo shot to Santander in the top of the fourth inning when his two-seam sinker on an 0-1 pitch was right down the middle. He got Ohun to fly out to center field and Ryan Mountcastle to fly out to right field to end the inning with no further damage and a 5-2 score.
After retiring the side in order in the fifth on a strikeout, fly ball, and groundout, Lively took the mound for the sixth inning. After getting Kauser to fly out to right and Lurchman to ground out to second, he gave up a single up the middle to Henderson. Facing Santander, who had allowed a home run with runners on second and third, Lively induced a four-pitch sweeper to shortstop on a 2-1 pitch for the final out.
After Lively left the mound, Cleveland completed the double-digit scoring with a five-run rally in the bottom of the seventh. The bullpen 카지노사이트 추천 gave up a run in the top of the eighth, but the Cavaliers didn’t give up any more runs and held on for the 10-3 victory.
Drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth round (135th overall) of the 2013 First-Year Player Draft, Lively made his big league debut with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2017. After posting a 4-10 record with a 4.80 ERA in 26 games (20 starts) over three seasons (2017-2019) in the big leagues, he joined the Samsung organization in August 2019 as a replacement for Deck McGuire.
After going 10-12 with a 4.14 ERA in 36 games over three seasons (2019-2021) in the KBO, Lively was claimed off waivers by Samsung in June 2021 due to a shoulder injury. He signed a minor league contract with the Cincinnati Reds, who drafted him in 2022, and returned to the big leagues last year, going 4-7 with a 5.38 ERA in 19 games (12 starts).
Lively, who signed a one-year, $750,000 contract with Cleveland ahead of the 2024 season, had to start the year on the disabled list (IL) with a respiratory viral illness.
After a late start to the season, Lively has exceeded expectations, going 10-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 19 starts. The 10 wins are tied for seventh in the American League (AL) in wins and first on the team. In just one season in the MLB, he’s won as many games as he did in three seasons in the KBO. At a mere $750,000 per year, Lively is the most affordable starter in baseball history, and he’s becoming the first KBO starter to be exported from the league.