LG Twins back on Saipan for spring training

The LG Twins Baseball Club is back on island to undergo its three-week spring training camp. The team will be using the Oleai Sports Complex track and field as well as Francisco “Tan Ko” Palacios Ballfield until Feb. 1.

The LG Twins is a professional baseball team based in Seoul, Korea and is a member of the Korean Professional Baseball Organization. The team was founded in 1982 and since then has won a pair of league championships. It won the Korean Series titles in 1990 and 1994. A total of eight teams make up the Korean Professional Baseball League.

Derron Flores is assisting them during their trip. Flores is a local youth baseball staple and a Division of Sports and Recreation employee who has developed a trusted relationship with the team over the years.

His father, Mayor Donald Flores, has also been a longtime supporter of the team.

This year a group just shy of 40 players make up the Twins’ bullpen staff. The team’s pitchers and catchers have been participating in batting practice, running exercises, and situational baseball drills. They have constructed temporary protective nets at “Tan Ko” field to provide a safer training environment.

“We like coming back to Saipan because of the gracious hospitality we receive in the past and because the travel time from Seoul is relatively short,” said LG Twins travel secretary J.D. Kim.

Kim added that the rest of the team is training in Okinawa, Japan. The bullpen group is expected to join the rest of the squad in Okinawa after the conclusion of the camp on Saipan.

“A lot of training camps are being held in Okinawa and we are preparing our pitchers here before gathering back together as a whole to participate in a number of exhibition games against other teams,” he said.

By rule, each Korean team is allowed to field two foreign players on its roster.

The LG Twins have acquired a pair of pitchers in an effort to beef up their bullpen.

The team prides itself on explosive hitting, but is working on strengthening its pitching game in order to make the playoffs this season. The LG Twins lost three free agents this offseason after finishing at the bottom of the eight-team field last year.

Former AAA prospect for Major League Baseball’s Cincinnati Reds, Benjamin Jukich, and former San Diego Padres flamethrower Radhames Liz of the Dominican Republic are the newest members of the squad.

According to Kim, Liz has been clocked at 102 mph, which is the fastest in the league.

The LG Twins also recruited Bong Jung-Keun to the bullpen back in 2008.

The Atlanta Braves recruited the lefty out of high school in 1998 and he also suited up for the Reds before signing with the LG Twins.