“Nifert and Oh Seung Hwan are next”
Doosan Bears’ Kim Taek-yeon took the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning with a 3-2 lead over KT Wiz of the 2024 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 17th, recording two hits, one walk, two strikeouts and no runs in one inning.
Last year, Doosan exercised its second overall pick in the first round of the rookie draft to Kim Taek-yeon. Doosan shouted Kim Taek-yeon’s name without much hesitation, as he not only sprayed fast balls over 150 kilometers since his high school days in Incheon, but also was under heavy pressure at the 2023 WBSC World Youth Championship (U-18), which was suspected of being abused. He also had high expectations, as a down payment, giving him 350 million won (317,500 U.S. dollars), the same as Hwang Joon-seo (Hanwha Eagles), the first overall pick.
It’s only in its first year, but so far, Kim has been a “real” talent. Kim, who received high praise from LA Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and Yamakawa Hotaka, the “No. 4 hitter” of the Softbank Hawks, who is striding to win the title in the Japanese Pacific League even before his debut in the professional league, successfully joined the opening game entry by pitching without allowing a single goal, including two saves in three exhibition games.
In particular, Yang Eui-ji said in an interview with reporters after the special match with Softbank, “There are a lot of people who say, ‘Shouldn’t Taek-yeon wrap up?’ and I think so, too. He is competitive enough,” adding, “I think everyone will think it’s good. The club picked a good player. He is still young, but if he grows up well, he will be able to go to the big stage. (Oh) Seung-hwan throws his ball like a big brother. I just enter the game boldly, and I think he is the best pitcher among the rookies I have seen recently.”
However, it was a shame to see her performance after the regular season began. After pitching poorly in three games in March, including one inning, two hits, three outs and two runs (two earned runs) against the NC Dinos in her debut match, Kim dropped to the second tier even before her schedule started in April. However, after returning to the mound, she has completely recovered her performance in practice and exhibition games. Kim pitched in eight games in April with a 1.93 ERA with one win and one hold, and continued her good performance in May with a 3.29 ERA with one win and two holds.
Kim Taek-yeon, who has gained experience as a “set-up man,” began to take charge of Doosan’s “back door” in earnest in June and began to leave a more dazzling impact. In 12 games in June, Kim Taek-yeon settled down with a commanding record of one hold and five saves with an ERA of 0.84, and in July, he also had a tremendous record of one loss and five saves with an ERA of 0.90. He also had three wins and three saves in four games in August before the game on the 17th, and even used “Kim Taek-eun” as the Rookie of the Year award with 3 wins, 1 loss, 4 holds, 14 saves and an ERA of 1.88.
What is the driving force behind Kim’s winning streak? Yang Eui-ji explains that even though he throws the same 150-kilometer ball, he is different. “(Kim) Taek-yeon throws it really precisely at the corner if you look closely. She is very experienced, not like a young player,” Yang said. “However, there are times when a ball is thrown en masse, but since she throws hard that enters the borderline, it is difficult for the opponent to hit even if she aims for a fastball. I can’t hit the ball even though I know it,” Yang said. “The fastball is second only to Nippert and Oh Seung-hwan, who I have received.” 메이저사이트
And on Thursday, Kim showed a game that brought him one step closer to the history of the KBO as well as the Rookie of the Year award. With Doosan leading 3-2, Kim took the mound in the bottom of the ninth inning to wrap up the game naturally. As soon as the inning started, Kim started the game by catching leadoff hitter Oh Jae-il with a fly ball to the left field. However, he briefly allowed follow-up hitter Hwang Jae-gyun to hit a hit. At that time, Kim seemed to end the inning with a double play by inducing Kim Sang-soo to ground out to the third base, but something unexpected happened.
As Kim Sang-soo’s ball went into the spotlight at Wizz Park, third baseman Lee Yoo-chan failed to find the location of the falling ball, putting himself in a crisis at the first and second bases. Finally, Kim gave up a walk to Bae Jeong-dae, causing the bases loaded. However, he remained firm. Kim took a sigh of relief by throwing a fastball of 152 km on the fourth pitch at 1B-2S, while Park Min-seok, who followed, garnered a one-run lead by striking out through a 150-km fastball on the fourth pitch, secured his 15th save. Yang Eui-ji’s highly praised fastball to end the inning with a “KK.”
With this save, Kim Taek-yeon will now be ahead of the new history of KBO high school rookie. The record for most saves by a high school graduate is 16 saves held by Na Seung-hyun, a former Lotte Giants player and current first-team manager, who succeeded in narrowing the gap to one. If he adds one save in the remaining game, it will be a tie, and if he adds two more, the KBO history will be renewed. As there are still many regular season schedules left, it is only a matter of time before setting a new record.