Will the Korean Monster reunite with KT, which they clashed with in the home opening game, and save Hanwha from ‘loss, loss, loss’ by achieving 100 wins in KBO?

‘Korean Monster’ Ryu Hyun-jin (Hanwha Eagles) once again challenges his KBO record of 100 wins. The opponent is KT Wiz, whom they have already faced once this year.

Ryu Hyun-jin will appear as Hanwha’s starting pitcher in the away game against KT in the 2024 professional baseball KBO League regular season held at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 24th.

This is Ryu Hyun-jin’s sixth appearance since returning to the Korean stage. He debuted as a professional in 2006 wearing a Hanwha uniform, and by 2012, he had 98 wins, 52 losses, 1 save, and an ERA of 2.80 in the KBO League. He advanced to the American Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2013 to 2023 and recorded 78 wins, 48 ​​losses, and an average ERA of 3.27. Ryu Hyun-jin, who posted , returned to Hanwha ahead of this season.

It wasn’t good in the beginning. On March 23, the opening game, he appeared against the Jamsil LG Twins, but his long-time ‘blade control’ was shaken and he suffered his 53rd loss in KBO history with 6 hits, 3 walks, 5 runs, and 2 earned runs in 3.2 innings. In the match against Daejeon KT on March 29th, they seemed to bounce back with 8 hits, 9 strikeouts, and 2 runs in 6 innings (no decision), but in the match against Gocheok Kiwoom Heroes on the 5th, they collapsed with 9 hits, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts, and 9 runs in 4.1 innings, giving the KBO their 54th loss in total. Added to career. The main cause of the team’s poor performance was the shaking of pitch position and control after 70 pitches.

Fortunately, Ryu Hyun-jin slowly began to revive. On the 11th, against the Jamsil Doosan Bears, he pitched well in 6 innings, allowing 1 hit, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts, and no runs, earning his first win since his return and 99th win of his KBO career.

At the time, Ryu Hyun-jin said, “(After returning) my first win was very late (laughter). In his last appearance (against Gocheok Kiwoom on the 5th), he gave up a lot of runs in one inning, which was difficult, but fortunately there was no such problem today. The 9 runs he gave up on the pitch in Gocheok was a shock only on that day. “I tried to forget it quickly because there was a next game,” he said. “The losing streak started because of me.” I met the coach in the sauna before the game. “Because I started off wrong, I promised to break the losing streak, and I’m glad I kept it,” he said with a bright smile.

He continued, “I think it was a question of control, but there was no problem with my physical condition at all. It seems like better results were achieved by paying more attention to control. When I came to Korea, my changeup was a problem. The grip was the same, but his arm swing was a little quicker. His velocity became faster, and he was able to induce a missed swing by throwing it at a similar angle to his fastball. He also has good curve control, so he used it well to control the count. “I don’t think there will be any talk of his pitching declining after 70 pitches,” he said, adding, “I’m now trying to get 100 wins, and I believe that 100 wins will follow if I stay faithful to my duties as a starting pitcher.”

Ryu Hyun-jin, who gained momentum after that, showed off his pitching against the Changwon NC Dinos on the 17th, throwing 98 balls and going 7 innings with 3 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts, and 3 runs. He pitched close to perfection, but the 3-pointer hit by Kim Seong-wook in the bottom of the 3rd inning was painful. It has been 4,213 days since Ryu Hyun-jin allowed a home run in the KBO League since he was hit by Kang Jung-ho in the Daejeon Nexen (now Kiwoom) Heroes game on October 4, 2012.

Unfortunately, he came off the mound in a 3-3 situation and was unable to achieve his 100th win, but it was still a meaningful appearance. This was Ryu Hyun-jin’s first time going through 7 innings since his return to the Korean stage, and the number of pitches (98) was also the highest.

NC coach Kang In-kwon, who saw Ryu Hyun-jin’s pitching as an ‘enemy general,’ said, “(If it weren’t for Kim Seong-wook’s home run), we probably would have lost rather than being dragged. “I looked at the scorecard and saw it with the naked eye, and the balls coming into the 2nd, 5th, and 8th lines in the middle were inside the 5th ball,” he said. This means that when the strike zone was divided into 9 parts, there were no balls coming into the top, middle, or bottom of the center point.

Coach Kang continued, “Most of the balls were formed at the border line. The cutter is a little high, and the changeup is on the outside and low. I saw a good pitch. “He’s definitely a good pitcher.”

The head coach was also pleased with Ryu Hyun-jin’s good pitching. Hanwha coach Choi Won-ho said, “(Ryu Hyun-jin) pitched well yesterday (17th) as well. I hit a home run with one of my cutters missing, but other than that (it was good). I didn’t get hit like this. There weren’t many correct hits. The pitching is becoming more and more stable. “Yesterday he pitched 7 innings again,” he said, giving a thumbs up.

At the same time, Coach Choi said about the reason for Ryu Hyun-jin’s revival, “The biggest change is that the left and right corner work is working well,” and “When that doesn’t work, the ball is used to count with a curve, and fastballs and cutters are concentrated in the center and hit. He said, “Because those things are counted and the ball count battle is in your favor, the number of balls that are driven has decreased.”

Now, Ryu Hyun-jin will challenge for his 100th win once more in the Suwon KT game on the 24th. Initially, it was expected that the team would play on the 23rd, but the game against Changwon NC on the 18th was canceled due to a minor issue and was delayed by a day.

Coincidentally, Ryu Hyun-jin clashed with KT once on the 29th of last month, which was the home opening game. As mentioned earlier, Ryu Hyun-jin gave up quite a few hits (8 hits) in 6 innings, but minimized the number of runs allowed (2 runs) by striking out 9 batters. However, Mel Rojas Jr. (2 hits in 3 at-bats), Jae-gyun Hwang (1 hit in 3 at-bats, 1 RBI), and Baek-ho Kang (1 hit in 3 at-bats, 1 RBI), who hit hard against him in the game, are people to be wary of.

If Ryu Hyun-jin defeats KT in this mound and becomes the winning pitcher, he will become the 5th Hanwha player to reach 100 wins, following Song Jin-woo (1997), Jeong Min-cheol (1999), Lee Sang-gun (2000), and Han Yong-deok (2000). It becomes. In addition, he surpassed Dustin Nippert (formerly Doosan, KT), who achieved 100 wins in 200 games, and became the third player with the fewest games (196 games) ever, following Kim Si-jin (formerly Samsung Lions, 186 games) and Sun Dong-yeol (formerly Haitai Tigers, 192 games). He will also be remembered as the person who achieved 100 wins.

Hanwha, which has recorded 7 wins and 1 loss in 8 games including the opening game, has been on a rapid upward trend, but has recently been in a severe slump and is eagerly waiting for Ryu Hyun-jin to pitch well. Hanwha has not been showing much since the beginning of April, with 4 wins and 13 losses, and the last 3 consecutive losses. The ranking, which was once the sole leader, has already fallen to 8th place (11 wins, 14 losses). In the midst of this, if Ryu Hyun-jin wins his 100th win, he can change the atmosphere and provide an opportunity for a rebound. Will Ryu Hyun-jin be able to save Hanwha from crisis by defeating KT and earning its 100th win?

Meanwhile, in response, KT announced Wes Benjamin as the starting pitcher. Benjamin, who has been with KT since 2022, is a left-handed pitcher who recorded 20 wins, 10 losses, and an average ERA of 3.23 in 46 games (256.2 innings) until last year. This season, he appeared in 5 games, recording 2 wins, 1 loss, and an ERA of 5.46. He faced Hanwha on the 31st of last month and was a struggling pitcher, allowing 11 hits, 2 home runs, 1 walk, 4 strikeouts, and 11 runs in 3 innings.

Lee Han-joo, MK Sports reporter