“I don’t have the game management skills, so I just try to throw hard.”
Hanwha Eagles Super Rookie Kim Seo-hyun made his first appearance on the mound in 64 days on June 11 against the Doosan Bears in Daejeon. After being sent down to the second team with a minor injury in early June, he was given a chance to get healthy and see what he could do.
His pitching performance was disastrous. In 2⅔ innings, he gave up four runs on six hits with two walks and two strikeouts. While he showed off his offspeed pitches, topping out at 156 mph and averaging 152 mph, he only threw 38 strikes out of 81 pitches. It was a self-destructive pitch, with a strike rate of 30.78%.
His overall season numbers are also unimpressive, with a 6.64 ERA in 19 games and 20 1/3 innings pitched. Considering that he was a favorite to win the Rookie of the Year right out of the gate, it’s an unsatisfactory performance for both Kim and Hanwha.
Hanwha head coach Choi Won-ho has decided to give Kim a chance to start in the first team for now. He was originally scheduled to start against the KT Wiz in Suwon on the 10th, but the game was canceled due to rain, which may have contributed to his poor performance on the 11th.
However, he pointed out that Kim Seo-hyun’s tendency to rely on his power alone needs improvement. In his opinion, Kim’s greed to throw stronger pitches when his pitching balance is not good is holding him back.
“You have to have a certain concept to run the game even when your pitches are not working or your pitching balance is not good, but because she is young and inexperienced, this part is a bit poor,” said Choi Won-ho. “In the 11th game, she just tried to throw hard, so her hands and neck opened up when she pitched and her balance collapsed.”
Choi Won-ho explained that Moon Dong-ju, who is breaking through as a prospect this year, had similar problems to Kim Seo-hyun last year, when he was in his first year as a professional.
Moon went 1-3 with a 5.65 ERA in 13 games and 28⅔ innings in the first team last year. He struck out 36 batters with his mid-150 mph fastball, but his command wasn’t great, allowing 4.40 walks per nine innings. His tendency to rely solely on his velocity proved to be his undoing.
Once Moon learned to relax a bit, he became one of the best starters in the league this season, going 7-7 with a 3.28 ERA in 20 games and 104⅓ innings pitched. His walks per nine innings have dropped to 3.11.
“Last year, I didn’t want to get hit (by hitters), so I was just trying to throw hard with my power, but this year is different. I’m throwing with the mindset that it’s okay to get hit,” he said.
“Moon Dong-ju also tried to throw hard when he was bad last year and in May this year,” Choi Won-ho said, “and I think Kim Seo-hyun can improve like Moon Dong-ju improved as he gained experience.” 토토사이트
“I told Kim Seo-hyun to think about the problems that appeared in the last 11 games and improve them to prepare for the next start,” he said, adding that he expects improvement.