“The coach said to pitch one more inning,”
Professional baseball Hanwha Eagles' 'monster pitcher' Ryu Hyun-jin (38) decided to substitute himself after pitching just 5 innings. He allowed 4 walks and 1 hit-by-pitch, giving up a total of 4 free bases with 85 pitches thrown.
On the 6th, Ryu Hyun-jin started at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon in a home game against the Samsung Lions, delivering 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, 3 walks, 1 hit-by-pitch, striking out 6, and giving up 1 run. Leading Hanwha to a 3-1 victory, Ryu notched his 4th win of the season (1 loss) and reached a total of 190 wins (112 in the KBO League and 78 in Major League Baseball), while lowering his season earned run average from 3.05 to 2.91.
Despite the win, Ryu's pitching was uncharacteristic of him. Up to the 5th inning, he allowed 3 walks and 1 hit-by-pitch, giving up a total of 4 free bases, which is the most he has allowed in 36 games since returning to the KBO League last year. Still, he managed to limit himself to just 1 run through 5 innings with his unique ability to manage crises, maintaining a comfortable pitch count of 85.
Ryu appeared likely to take the mound in the 6th inning, but Hanwha activated their bullpen at the start of the inning. After the game, Ryu said, “(Yang Sang-moon) the coach said to pitch one more inning, but my pitching balance wasn’t good today. I had too many walks, and there were some hit-by-pitches as well. Overall, there was a big difference between strikes and balls. I managed to get through 5 innings, but I told the coach I would only pitch through the 5th.”
There was nothing particularly wrong with his physical condition, but he felt that it was a very bad day for his condition and decided it would be better not to push himself. It was a tight game with a score of 2-1, and pushing himself could have led to losing.
It's not easy for a player to stop and call a ‘stop’ during a game. When immersed in the game, the competitive spirit can cloud judgment, making calm assessments difficult. However, Ryu, a veteran with 20 years in the professional league, knows how to hit the brakes. He has the foresight to suppress immediate desires and consider the long term.
In 2019, during his time with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Ryu became the first Asian pitcher in Major League Baseball to achieve the lowest earned run average. That year, had he not stopped when he felt pain in his left groin during the game against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 9 (Korea time), it would have been impossible to have that monster season. After feeling pain, Ryu voluntarily exited the game and skipped a rotation. At that time, Ryu said, “The (pain) was a little mild. I thought it would be better to stop at that point. Considering my body, I think I made the right decision to stop.” By quickly assessing the situation, he prevented further injury, allowing him to complete the remainder of the season.
Last year, Ryu also canceled his appearance in a game against the Samsung Lions minutes before the start on May 31, citing elbow pain. Though he could have pitched, he felt discomfort in his elbow and decided to stop. That day, Ryu only skipped one rotation and demonstrated his fitness by completing a full season at 37 years old.
One run in 5 innings is a basic duty for a starter, but still, Ryu felt unsettled. He said, “I’m sorry for only being able to pitch 5 innings and coming down. A starter should pitch around 6 innings, but many middle pitchers came out. Although I have a day off after playing tomorrow (7th), I still believe starters should always be responsible for pitching 6 innings each game. I feel sorry for the bullpen pitchers in that regard. I will prepare well to pitch with good balance in the next game.”
It’s true that there was a larger burden on the bullpen, as closer Kim Seo-hyun was resting after two consecutive appearances. However, the 5 middle pitchers, Park Sang-won (1 inning), Kim Beom-soo (⅓ inning), Jung Woo-joo (1⅓ innings), Jo Dong-wook (⅓ inning), Han Seung-hyuk (1 inning), combined to pitch 4 scoreless innings to secure Ryu's victory.
Hanwha also achieved its second 8-game winning streak of the season. Previously, Hanwha's first 8-game winning streak of the season ended on the 24th of last month against Lotte when Ryu lost, allowing 4 runs in 6 innings. However, this time, they continued their 8-game winning streak. Ryu noted, “I sincerely prayed that my win streak wouldn't be cut off. Now the next bomb has transferred to (Moon) Dong-joo,” and added with a smile, “All our pitchers have been doing so well. I hope we can continue to fight like this.”
The winning streak bomb that did not end with Ryu has been passed to starting pitcher Moon Dong-joo for the game against Samsung on the 7th. This marks a new challenge for a 9-game winning streak. The most recent 9-game winning streak for Hanwha occurred from June 4, 2005, against Doosan to June 14 in Gwangju, an incredible 20 years ago. This was before Ryu even debuted professionally during his senior year at Dongsan High School.
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