Following Moon Dong-ju, Ryu Hyun-jin will also be removed from the first division entry... Second-year left-hander Young-gun will be the substitute starter
Following Moon Dong-ju, Ryu Hyun-jin will also be removed from the first division entry... Second-year left-hander Young-gun will be the substitute starter
Blog Article
Hanwha Eagles left-hander Young-gun Cho Dong-wook will take on an alternative starting role.
Hanwha adjusted its entry for the first division ahead of the sixth game of the season against the KIA Tigers of the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League held at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field on Sunday. When it placed Lee Tae-yang in the first division, it removed Ryu from the entry.안전놀이터
The name that stands out the most is Ryu Hyun-jin. Ryu has rotated for more than two months since the opening of this season, and has recorded five wins, three losses and an ERA of 3.47 in 70 innings. He continued to maintain his pace until last month, contributing to his team's upward momentum.
However, Ryu faced unexpected variables in his first appearance in June. As a starter at the game against the KT Wiz in Daejeon on Saturday, he felt uncomfortable with his left adductor muscle and left side of the mound earlier than expected.
Ryu has shown signs of nervousness since the beginning. With two outs in the top of the first inning, Ryu gave up his first solo shot to Ahn. He allowed no runs in the top of the second inning, but allowed three runs in the top of the third inning alone.
Ryu gave up a walk to Chun Sung-ho with two outs and runners on the first and second bases in the top of the fourth inning after Lee Ho-yeon's pitch, Kwon Dong-jin's strikeout, Cho Dae-hyun's hit, and Bae Jeong-dae's strikeout. However, he frowned as if he felt something wrong with his physical condition, and immediately his trainer headed to the mound. Eventually, the Hanwha bench called in left-hander Cho Dong-wook. Ryu's final performance on the day was eight hits (one homer) with two outs and four strikeouts during three ⅔ innings.
The club explains that the degree of injury is not serious. An official from Hanwha explained, "Ryu Hyun-jin was removed from the entry to recover from the discomfort of his left adductor muscle that occurred during pitching on the 5th, and is expected to join the (first team) after skipping the rotation about two turns."
When he was playing in the U.S. Major League Baseball (MLB), Ryu also experienced adductor muscle injury. When he was playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he suffered left adductor muscle injury in 2016, 2018 and 2019. The head coach is also aware of this.
"It's not too bad. Fortunately, the first half is not over, but I think it would be better to take a rest now because I've been injured before," Hanwha coach Kim Kyung-moon said in a meeting with reporters before the game on Wednesday. "There will be an All-Star break soon, so (the starting team) should go back well until then."
In the early days of this season, Hanwha entered the race for the top spot by banking on its solid pitching. However, following Moon Dong-ju's removal from the entry list on April 26, and Ryu Hyun-jin's removal from the entry list for the main league team also put Hanwha on the burden.
For now, Cho Dong-wook, born in 2004, will fill Ryu's vacancy. He joined Hanwha in the 11th place in the second round last year, indicating his potential for growth. Cho's performance in the 2024 season was one win, two losses and an earned run average of 6.37 in 41 innings in 21 games (eight starts).
In all 27 games this season, Cho took the mound as relief pitcher and recorded three holds, one save and an ERA of 3.70 in 24 ⅓ innings. Notably, he played 13 games and eight ⅓ innings in May alone, without scoring a single earned run.
In the game against KT on Saturday last week, he allowed five hits, one out, three strikeouts, and three runs during two ⅔ innings. "I have decided on (alternative starters). That's why I made (Cho) throw a lot of pitches yesterday (on Saturday)," Kim said.
As for Moon Dong-ju, who is currently in the second division, he needs more time. "(Moon) Dong-ju is said to be in a better condition, but the coach cannot tell us the date first. I think I will tell the coach when I am done," Kim said.