Hanwha starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin is fighting in the professional baseball '2024 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League' exhibition game between Kia Tigers and Hanwha Eagles held at Hanwha Life Insurance Eagles Park in Jung-gu, Daejeon on the afternoon of the 12th.
‘Monster’ Ryu Hyun-jin (37, Hanwha Eagles) took the mound as a starter in a Korean professional baseball exhibition game for the first time in 12 years and showed off his legendary pitching, raising expectations for this season.
In addition, Moon Dong-ju and Noh Si-hwan, the core of the two-hitting team, showed great performances from the exhibition game, proving why Hanwha is considered a dark horse this season.
Ryu Hyun-jin started the exhibition game against the KIA Tigers held at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon on the 12th and recorded 3 hits and 1 run in 4 innings.
Ryu Hyun-jin threw a variety of pitches, including fastballs (29), cutters (10), change-ups (12), and curves (11), and the maximum speed of fastballs reached 148 km, showing good condition. In particular, it was impressive to see KIA's main batting lineup, Socrates Brito, Choi Hyung-woo, and Kim Sun-bin, caught in succession in the 4th inning when the team was on second base with no outs due to a defensive error.
However, it was not only Ryu Hyun-jin who shined in this game. Hanwha's promising pitchers Moon Dong-ju and Noh Si-hwan also performed well.
Hanwha Moon Dong-ju, who was substituted, is fighting back during the professional baseball '2024 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League' exhibition game between Kia Tigers and Hanwha Eagles held at Hanwha Life Insurance Eagles Park in Jung-gu, Daejeon on the afternoon of the 12th.
Moon Dong-ju took the mound as the team's third pitcher in the top of the sixth inning, following Ryu Hyun-jin, and pitched two innings, allowing one hit, one walk, and striking out one.
‘Fireballer’ Moon Dong-ju threw a powerful ball with a maximum fastball speed of 154 km/h and an average speed of 150 km/h. No. 4 hitter Noh Si-hwan came to bat twice in the bottom of the first inning after Hanwha's batting lineup had completed one turn and hit the final 3-run home run and 2 RBIs at the right time. Hanwha took the win early by scoring 9 points in the bottom of the first inning thanks to Noh Si-hwan's hard hitting. After the game, Noh Si-hwan raised expectations by saying, “I don’t really care about the home run in the exhibition game, but my timing at the plate is good and my physical condition seems to be better than last year.” Moon Dong-ju and Noh Si-hwan were expected to be the future of Hanwha, winning the Rookie of the Year and Home Run King, respectively, last season. Since the spring camp practice game, the two have been in good condition, proving that last season's performance was not flashy.
Hanwha, which hovered in the bottom 9th to 10th place from 2019 to 2023, was evaluated as a dark horse this season even before the announcement of Ryu Hyun-jin's return.
At the center of the team's young resources and core, Moon Dong-ju and Noh Si-hwan, also played a significant part. The Hanwha club expected that if the young players, including these players, grow as planned, they will create a synergy effect with newly recruited veterans Ahn Chi-hong, Kim Kang-min, and Lee Jae-won.
Coupled with the return of Ryu Hyun-jin, Hanwha may surpass this season's dark horse and shake up the top rankings. 고스톱사이트