‘Save the special rookie.’
Right-handed pitcher Kim Seo-hyeon (19, Hanwha) received high expectations early on. Since his days at Seoul High School, he has thrown a fastball that can reach 160 km. He also recorded the highest speed of 163 km at the 30th World Youth Baseball Championship (U18 Baseball World Cup) held last year. He joined Hanwha with the first overall pick in the 2023 rookie draft without any change. He has high potential, but adapting to the pros is another thing. He is showing ups and downs of pitching on the mound. He had a 5.79 earned run average with one save in 9⅓ innings in his last 10 games.
He basically has a lot of balls. He is averaging 19.8 balls per inning pitched. The number of walks per 9 innings is also high at 6.23. He also gave up 4 walks (3 walks, 1 hit ball) in 1⅓ innings against Samsung in Daejeon on the 4th. It is not easy for him to take the lead and run the game because he is not able to take the ball count to his advantage. Hanwha coach Choi Won-ho said, “In the case of (Kim) Seo-Hyun, I try not to get along. He has a lot of thoughts, so the tempo slows down and he has a lot of balls. He analyzed that the proportion of breaking balls also increased.”먹튀검증
He took drastic measures. Director Choi Won-ho said, “I told Seo Hyun-yi to only throw as directed by the catcher.” He said at first that he wanted to increase the rate of fastball through the pitcher part. Even so, as more balls fall out, I wanted to go a little simpler. To keep the balance, the angle of the arm was also fixed. Manager Choi Won-ho said, “If you change the octagonal angle, it is difficult to pitch consistently. He asked to throw only one, whether it was raised or lowered, until he caught the persimmon. He said it was comfortable when he got off,” he explained.
It is also a way to alleviate the burden. Manager Choi Won-ho said, “Basically, it’s correct to throw what the pitcher wants,” but “when it doesn’t work, it’s helpful to just look at the catcher and throw without thinking.” Belief in salvation is certain. Director Choi Won-ho said, “It is better to go simple for types (fastball pitchers) like Seohyun and (Moon) Dongju. He also told me not to throw a manned ball at all. Even if you throw it in the middle, there are not many balls that go straight. I think the probability of being hit repeatedly is low because the ball is good.”