This article is part of our Dream11 Fantasy KBO series.
Doosan Bears (21-12) at Hanwha Eagles (7-27)
June 14th, 4:00 AM EDT
Note: The stats listed here are accurate through June 12th. The game between these two teams on June 13th was suspended due to rain and will be completed Sunday as the first half of a double-header, with the second game being played shortly afterwards. The contest being previewed here will only cover that second game.
Projected starters
LHP Won-joon Jang (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs RHP Warwick Saupold (2-4, 4.11 ERA)
Game Preview
The Bears have settled into second place of the KBO standings with a 21-12 record, while the Eagles sit dead last with a 7-27 mark following an almost unbelievable 18 straight losses. There could hardly be a bigger gap between these two sides. The Bears have played well of late, winning six of their last eight games, while the Eagles haven't seen their results improve even after they sent several players to their Futures League roster last weekend in an effort to shake things up. Doosan will send Won-joon Jang, who will be making his first start of the season, to the mound. The Eagles will counter with Australian Warwick Saupold, who owns a 4.11 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP in seven starts this year. Both marks are down from his 2019 numbers, when he posted a 3.51 ERA with a 1.27 WHIP in 31 starts.
Injuries
Kyoung Min Heo, Bears - Out - Finger
June 4 - Heo will miss 1-to-2 weeks
Doosan Bears (21-12) at Hanwha Eagles (7-27)
June 14th, 4:00 AM EDT
Note: The stats listed here are accurate through June 12th. The game between these two teams on June 13th was suspended due to rain and will be completed Sunday as the first half of a double-header, with the second game being played shortly afterwards. The contest being previewed here will only cover that second game.
Projected starters
LHP Won-joon Jang (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs RHP Warwick Saupold (2-4, 4.11 ERA)
Game Preview
The Bears have settled into second place of the KBO standings with a 21-12 record, while the Eagles sit dead last with a 7-27 mark following an almost unbelievable 18 straight losses. There could hardly be a bigger gap between these two sides. The Bears have played well of late, winning six of their last eight games, while the Eagles haven't seen their results improve even after they sent several players to their Futures League roster last weekend in an effort to shake things up. Doosan will send Won-joon Jang, who will be making his first start of the season, to the mound. The Eagles will counter with Australian Warwick Saupold, who owns a 4.11 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP in seven starts this year. Both marks are down from his 2019 numbers, when he posted a 3.51 ERA with a 1.27 WHIP in 31 starts.
Injuries
Kyoung Min Heo, Bears - Out - Finger
June 4 - Heo will miss 1-to-2 weeks with a fracture in his right little finger, according to Tae Woo Kim of SpoTV. Heo was a late scratch from Wednesday's lineup because of his injury, and he will now miss several more games for the same reason.
Jae Won Oh, Bears - 10-Day IL - Hamstring
June 10 - Doosan manager Tae-hyoung Kim said Wednesday that Oh (hamstring) will rejoin the Bears this weekend to resume training with the club, The Chosun Ilbo reports. While Kim didn't provide an estimate for when Oh might be ready to come off the 10-day injured list, the fact the infielder is traveling with the club for its series at Hanwha suggests the hamstring injury he sustained June 5 perhaps isn't as serious as initially anticipated. The Bears will likely wait and see how Oh's hamstring responds to on-field work before offering up a clearer timeline for his return.
Ju Seok Ha, Eagles - 10-Day IL - Thigh
June 2 - Eagles manager Yong-duk Han admitted Tuesday that Ha (thigh) is recovering from his injury slower than anticipated and will likely be sidelined until July, The Chosun Ilbo reports. When Ha injured his right thigh in a May 17 game, the Eagles were optimistic that he would complete his rehab in four weeks and rejoin the club around mid-to-late June. The shortstop's recovery timeline now looks like it will fall more in the six-week range, if not longer, given his lack of progress to date. Ha's ongoing absence should continue to open up regular work for Si Hwan Noh in the middle infield.
Sun Jin Oh, Eagles - 10-Day IL - Thigh
June 2 - Eagles manager Yong-duk Han said Tuesday that Oh (thigh) is recovering from his injury slower than anticipated and will likely be sidelined until July, The Chosun Ilbo reports. Hanwha has been down its top two shortstops in Ju Seok Ha and Oh since mid-May while both have battled thigh injuries, opening up regular work in the middle infield for Si Hwan Noh. Though Ha and Oh were both expected to require only four weeks to heal up from their respective injuries, the limited progress both players have made to date appears to have prompted Hanwha to push their recovery timelines back to at least six weeks. Before going down with the injury, Oh went 9-for-26 with a home run, two doubles and five RBI in nine games with Hanwha.
Doosan Bears Expected Lineup:
SP - Won-joon Jang
1. Kun Woo Park
3. Jae Il Oh
4. Jae Hwan Kim
6. Se Hyuk Park
7. Jae Ho Kim
8. Soo Bin Jung
Hanwha Eagles Expected Lineup:
SP - Warwick Saupold
1. Yong-Kyu Lee
2. Eun Won Jung
3. Jared Hoying
4. Tae-Kyun Kim
5. Jin Ho Jung
7. Si Hwan Noh
Top picks:
Jose Fernandez, Bears: Fernandez has been one of the top offensive threats in the league this season and remains one of the MVP favorites. The slugging first baseman has six hits (including a homer) in his last 18 at-bats and enters this matchup with a .406 batting average and 31 RBI in 33 contests.
Jae Il Oh, Bears: Oh has hit safely in five of the Bears' last six games, hitting .381 with a .500 on-base percentage during that stretch. He's recorded multiple hits in three of those games and has a great chance to do so again against a weak Eagles pitching staff.
Kun Woo Park, Bears: Park seems to be getting hot with back-to-back three-hit performances and has hit safely in 10 of the Bears' last 11 games. After recording at least three hits in three of his last four games, he is now hitting .465 with a .511 on-base percentage over that 11-game stretch.
Jared Hoying, Eagles: Hoying is a decent threat for an Eagles-based lineup, although stacking Eagles might not be the best idea due to the team's ongoing losing streak. Hoying has at least one hit in three of the Eagles' last four games after missing two contests earlier this month, and he has four home runs in 107 plate appearances this year.
Captaincy Options
2. Jae Il Oh
3. Kun Woo Park
Dream11 Team
P – Jae Min Kang
C – Seung Hyun Jang
IF – Jose Fernandez (C)
IF – Jae Il Oh (VC)
IF – Joo Hwan Choi
IF – Si Hwan Noh
OF – Kun Woo Park
OF – Jae Hwan Kim
OF – Sung Woo Yang
