Five days before discharge, he finally took the mound in a real game. Koo Chang-mo, who is playing for the Army team, appeared in the Futures League.

Koo Chang-mo came on as a relief pitcher in the 2025 Futures League game against the Lotte Giants held at the Mun-gyeong baseball stadium on the 12th, recording 1 inning, 1 hit, 2 strikeouts, and no earned runs.

Koo Chang-mo pitched in the 8th inning while leading 5-4, getting leadoff hitter taxes Jo Se-jin out with a fly ball to right field on the fourth pitch after two strikes. He allowed the first pitch to Kim Dong-hyun to be a hit to left field.

With one out and one on base, he struck out Kim Dong-kyu looking on a 1-ball, 2-strike count. He then struck out Bae In-hyeok on three pitches to end the inning. He threw 12 pitches, with 11 strikes.

This was his first appearance in a remarkable 71 days. Koo Chang-mo became the winning pitcher in a game against the Samsung Lions on March 19, throwing 5 innings, allowing 3 hits, striking out 8, and giving up 1 earned run. He then recorded 3 innings, 3 hits, 3 strikeouts, and 1 earned run against the Samsung Lions on April 2. During the game, he sustained an injury when a hit ball struck between his left shoulder and chest. Although it was not a serious injury, he refrained from exerting himself and managed his condition through training for over 2 months.

Koo Chang-mo will be discharged from the Army team on the 17th. However, it is expected to take time before his return to the first team, as he has begun a buildup to increase his pitch count.

During a phone call in January with new NC manager Lee Ho-jun, Koo Chang-mo stated that if the team maintained 5th place while he was in the Army, he would return after discharge and help them rise to 1st place.

If Koo Chang-mo pitches healthily as a starting pitcher, it will be a significant boost in the ranking competition. Koo Chang-mo was a key player in NC's first overall championship victory in 2020. Despite having a gap in the second half of the regular season due to injury, he dominated the league with 9 wins, no losses, and an earned run average of 1.74 over 15 games (93⅓ innings). He contributed to the championship by performing well in the Korean Series, with a record of 1 win, 1 loss, and an earned run average of 1.38 in 2 games (13 innings).

However, after undergoing surgery for a stress fracture of the ulna in 2021, he took a year off. He excelled again in 2022 with an earned run average of 2.10, recording 11 wins, 5 losses over 19 games. Unfortunately, in 2023, he was unable to pitch many games again due to another stress fracture of the ulna, recording 1 win, 3 losses, and an earned run average of 2.96 over 11 games before undergoing surgery once more. Koo Chang-mo, who joined the Army team in December 2023, will soon be discharged.

After the 2022 season, NC entered into a multi-year contract with Koo Chang-mo. Since he did not acquire free agency after the 2024 season, the contract terms are for 6+1 years from 2023 to 2029, with a guaranteed salary of 8.8 billion won, and a maximum of 13.2 billion won if incentives are met and the 7th-year contract is executed.

Along with Koo Chang-mo, Jo Min-seok will also be discharged on the 17th. Jo Min-seok is expected to return to the first team immediately. Manager Lee Ho-jun noted, "The coaching staff evaluated that Jo Min-seok can be utilized in the first team right away. If there are no medical issues, I plan to use him as a long relief pitcher."

On that day, Jo Min-seok started the game against Lotte, recording 3 innings, allowing 4 hits, 1 walk, 1 strikeout, and 2 earned runs. He has a record of 4 wins, 4 losses, and an earned run average of 5.59 over 13 games (56⅓ innings) this season.

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