Foreign pitcher James Nail (31, KIA Tigers) will take the mound with a great sense of responsibility.

Nail will start in Game 4 of the Korean Series (KS, best of seven games) against the Samsung Lions at Samsung Lions Park (Lapak) in Daegu on Sunday. Having won in both Game 1 and Game 2 of the series at home, Kia has lost Game 3 and is recording two wins and one loss overall in the series. Depending on the outcome of Game 4, the direction of the KS championship will be determined. Three wins and one loss and two wins and two losses are far from the ground.안전놀이터

The starting pitcher for Game 4 is "return match" between Nail and Won Tae-in. The two players took the mound side by side in Game 1 of the series on Saturday. Nail allowed four hits (one homer), two strikeouts and one run with six strikeouts in five innings. Won allowed two hits with two strikeouts and three strikeouts in five innings. The game was suspended due to rain in the sixth inning, and Kia won 5-1.

Game 1 of the KS was Nail's return to injury. Nail suffered an unexpected injury when she was hit in the face by a training ball against the Changwon NC Dinos on August 24. After going to the operating table the next day due to a broken jaw, she returned to the mound devoted to rehabilitation treatment, showing off her strong performance by using a fastball of up to 150km/h with two-seam and a sweeper, a type of large-movement slider.

"I am generally satisfied with the pitching (in the first round of the KS). I wanted to throw it until the sixth inning, but I am satisfied with the fact that I threw it that far depending on the situation," Nail told reporters before the third round of the KS. "I didn't worry much because I had faith in the bullpen that followed. I was especially proud of Jeon for blocking the crisis well."

He has dispelled concerns over his injury. Rather, it is assessed that restoration after rehabilitation greatly helped boost his pitching capability. "It can be said that it was difficult after getting hurt, but my physical condition started to improve after a week or two," Nail said. "More than anything, it helped me a lot because I was able to eat food," Nail said. "Actually, I think I got a good pitch because I had enough time to build up my body during that period. My shoulder that I threw 150 innings came back fresh while resting, so I think my sweeper has gotten a little better."

As for the nail polish, he was not scheduled to take the mound in the upcoming KS. If the rotation was to be done as planned, he would most likely take the mound in Game 5 in Gwangju. However, as Game 1 ended in two days due to a suspended game, he was given "forced rest," and as a result, he prepared to take part in Game 4. Lapak is a stadium that has the most home runs (216) in the KBO League this season.

In the third round of the KS, KIA pitchers allowed four runs with four solo home runs and bowed their heads. "Actually, I didn't pitch in Lapak due to schedule, but I got to throw it because of rain. It's part of the series. I will prepare accordingly without any major changes," Nail said. Nail has started in two games and has an ERA of 4.09 for Lapak this season.