Ryu Hyun-jin (37, Hanwha Eagles), who returned to the KBO League for the first time in 12 years, ended with a regret.
The Hanwha Eagles excluded Ryu from the first division entry ahead of the home game of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League against the KIA Tigers at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon on Sunday. The Hanwha Eagles recruited pitcher Kim Gyu-yeon in place of Ryu.
Ryu Hyun-jin, who appeared splendidly in 2006 by winning 18 wins with an ERA of 2.23 204 strikeouts and winning Rookie of the Year and MVP, advanced to the U.S. with 98 wins in seven seasons.
Ryu Hyun-jin, who won 124 games in 11 seasons from 2013 to 2023, returned to Hanwha after receiving an all-time high of 17 billion won for eight years ahead of this season.
He suffered severe slump in the early days of this season, but Ryu Hyun-jin was the best choice for Ryu. He had disappointing period with two wins, three losses and ERA 5.21 through April, including most lost games among his individuals, before rebounding since May. In June, he pitched well with two wins and ERA 1.80 in four games, and has been a strong starting player for his team since then. 메이저놀이터
Above all, he kept the rotation consistently and pitched 158 ⅓ innings in 28 games, winning 10-8 and recording an ERA of 3.87. He recorded the most wins and the most digestible innings in his team, and achieved 16 quality starts (more than six innings as a starter and less than three earned runs).
ERA ranked 10th overall, followed by Samsung’s Won Tae-in (3.66) and LG’s Son Joo-young (3.79), while QS ranked second after Doosan’s Kwak Bin (17th). His consistency shone all the more.
Ryu Hyun-jin, who scored his seventh 10th win on the domestic stage by allowing one run in six innings against the Lotte Giants on the 13th, finished the season with the end of the 19th game. According to the schedule, he was able to play the last of the three consecutive home games starting on the 27th, but manager Kim Kyung-moon decided to return to Korea and give Ryu Hyun-jin, who ran tirelessly, an early break. This is because the fall baseball has already been canceled.
Ryu Hyun-jin returned to Hanwha for the first time in 12 years and said his goal this season was to “enter the fall baseball league” and said, “My goal is to win within the contract period.”
However, Hanwha, which experienced confusion such as manager change in its first season, expressed its hope for fall baseball until the last minute, but failed to overcome a crisis and lowered its head.
What’s more important is the 2025 season, which will usher in the era of new stadiums. Hanwha, which had a hard time this season amid sluggish foreign pitchers, has seen its rebound, as Hwang Young-mook, Jang Jin-hyuk, Kwon Kwang-min, Kim Tae-yeon, and Kim Seo-hyun are raising expectations. Jung Woo-joo, who was one of the biggest fish in the rookie draft, has been recruited, expressing his hope for next season.
Just like before he left for the U.S., Ryu played his role as a lonely ace. Expectations are high on whether he will be able to play in fall baseball at his new stadium next season with his more mature teammates.