“Isn’t it similar to Fujikawa?”
In 51 games this year, Doosan Bears’ Kim Taek-yeon even wrote “Kim Taek-yeo” on the title of “New In King,” which can only be held once in her life with 3 wins, 2 losses, 4 holds, 15 saves and an ERA of 1.98. Unless there are big variables, Kim Taek-yeon is likely to be the winner of this year’s Rookie of the Year award. This is why Doosan gave 350 million won, the same down payment as Hwang Jun-seo, the first overall pick, after exercising the second overall pick in the first round of the rookie draft last year.
Kim received tremendous attention even before she entered the professional league. She was under heavy pressure at the 2023 WBSC World Youth Championship (U-18), where she was suspected of being abused, and caught Lee’s eyes properly at the spring camp. Notably, she pitched a scoreless game against the Japanese pro baseball Softbank Hawks, spraying fastballs with a maximum speed of 152 km per RPM, and receiving high praise from Japanese “Nikkan Sports” reporter and No. 4 hitter Hotaka Yamakawa.
Moreover, as she showed such good performance in practice and exhibition games, she was listed on Team Korea’s list to face the San Diego Padres-LA Dodgers, and did not have a chance to take the mound against the San Diego Padres, but displayed clean pitching by striking out Teoscar Hernandez and James Outman back-to-back in their showdowns with the Dodgers. And this time, manager Dave Roberts gave Kim a thumbs-up. It was more than just lip service.
Kim Taek-yeon, who was listed as Doosan’s “finishing” candidate before the start of the regular season, accumulated experience as a setup man in the beginning. And since she has been in charge of the “back door” in earnest since June, her performance has been overwhelming. Kim Taek-yeon left a record of one hold, five saves, and an ERA of 0.84 in 12 games in June, and continued her winning streak with one loss, five saves and an ERA of 0.90 in July. She suffered a loss when she hit a walk-off home run against KT Wiz on the 18th, but she also has a record of 1 win, 1 loss, 4 saves and an ERA of 1.04 in August.
His biggest advantage is his fastball, which is based on high RPM. Yang Eui-ji, the catcher of 15.2 billion won, explained that he cannot hit the fastball even if he is aiming for it. “If you look closely, he throws it really precisely into the corner. He is very experienced, not like a young player,” Yang said. “However, sometimes it is hit when the ball is concentrated, but since he throws hard when entering the borderline, it is difficult for the opposing batter to hit even if he aims for a fastball. He cannot hit the fastball even though he knows it,” Yang said. “The fastball is next to Nippert and Oh Seung-hwan, who I have received.” 스포츠토토
Manager Lee Seung-yeop recalled Fujikawa Kyuji to Kim Taek-yeon’s fastball. Fujikawa’s biggest advantage is that he is also a “straightforward” like Kim Taek-yeon. Fujikawa, who is like a legend in the Japanese professional baseball, entered the professional stage in the first round of the rookie draft in 1998 after being nominated by the Hanshin Tigers. He pitched in a total of 782 games in Japan alone, recording 60 wins, 38 losses, 163 saves, 243 saves, and an ERA of 5.74 over three seasons with the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers. His 243 saves ranks fifth in NPB history.
Coach Lee Seung-yeop said before the game on the 18th, “I have no doubt about (Kim) Taek-yeon at all. Among our team’s bullpen, there are (Choi) Ji-gang, (Lee) Byung-hun, (Hong) Gun-hee, and (Kim) Kang-ryul, but they are the most reliable,” adding, “I don’t know because I haven’t faced Oh Seung-hwan, but I think he is that good of a player. He is a player who can also strike out in 2B.”
Coach Lee Seung-yeop, who had no chance to face Oh Seung-hwan, who was a teammate of Samsung when he was active, mentioned Fujikawa’s name in this section. “I’ve faced many players, but from the outside, I think it’s similar to Fujikawa. We have to see the swing and miss ratio, but Fujikawa’s fastball really comes to mind,” he said, adding, “I don’t know because I haven’t hit Kim Taek-yeon’s ball, but I think I’ll become a player who can throw that powerful ball in the next few years.”
When the coach talked about wearing a fork ball, he said, “I don’t think I need a fork ball right now. He is too young. He is not fully developed yet. However, his physical condition has significantly improved compared to when he joined the pro baseball league. His physical condition has definitely improved through training parts and reinforcement training. That’s why I look forward to his future career more than now.”
The performance he is showing in the game is impressive, but the fact that a first-year high school graduate maintains a one-point ERA despite the remarkable “tago thrower” phenomenon this year shows how good he is pitching. Manager Lee Seung-yeop also said, “I think he is that good of a player. The closing pitcher is doing well without failure at a time when there are a lot of runs due to the long distance of both batting and riding. If Taek-yeon goes out now, there is a real sense of stability. Of course, we cannot relax until we have all 27 outcounts, but he is a player who can be confident that we can win if Taek-yeon goes up.”
Kim, who is nearing the rookie of the year award, is currently aiming for the most saves by a high school graduate in the KBO history. Na Seung-hyun (16 saves) of the former Lotte Giants holds the record for the most saves by a high school graduate in the KBO league, only one gap from Kim. Just two more saves will give birth to a new history. Unless there are other problems, it is natural to set a new record.