*This content was translated by AI.
Park Chan-ho (31), a free agent (FA) who has now moved to the Doosan Bears. And Hong Min-gyu (20), a compensation player for Park Chan-ho, who was considered unconventional at the time of his nomination. He was mentioned as one of the candidates for this season's selection right away by "winning coach" Lee Bum-ho. Will he be able to play a role in KIA's mound.
Like last season, KIA will have James Nail and Adam Oler build a foreign one-two punch. On top of that, other native starting pitchers will support it.
Coach Lee Bum-ho revealed his plans for this season's starting lineup before leaving the spring camp. Director Lee said, "We are thinking about seven to eight people, including Lee Eui-ri, (Yang) Hyun-jong, (Kim) Tae-hyung, (Hwang) Dong-ha, (I) Tae-yang, and (Hong) Min-gyu. They said, "I'm thinking about going there so that I can play the number of starting pitches in the camp."
"(Kim) Do-hyun and these friends can sometimes rotate the starting rotation. First of all, I think we should create a physical condition where we can throw a lot of pitches, then set up five players and prepare the rest of the players as pitchers who can throw two to three innings in the middle. "When the starters are a little hard or need to rest, I think they can do well if they go to the bullpen, which can keep them for two to three innings," he said.
On top of that, manager Lee mentioned the need for starting pitchers to manage innings. Manager Lee said, "Shouldn't Yang Hyun-jong, Lee Eui-ri, and Kim Tae-hyung adjust the innings little by little. Lee Eui-ri is the first dismissal to start the season completely from the beginning after surgery, and Tae-hyung is also the first starter. So I think about 100 to 120 innings would be appropriate. The time when Kim Do-hyun, who does not go to the first camp, comes up is an opportunity for other starting pitchers to rest. He also pointed out that if Hwang Dong-ha is okay, I will take turns using it with Kim Tae-hyung.
Among the native candidates mentioned by head coach Lee, the eye-catching name is right-hander Hong Min-gyu, who is in his second year as a professional.
Hong Min-gyu is the main character appointed by KIA as Park Chan-ho's compensation player in November last year. Hong Min-gyu joined Doosan as the 26th overall pick in the third round of the 2025 rookie draft after graduating from Nonhyeon Elementary School in Seoul (Yongsan-gu Little) and Daewon Middle School.
Hong Min-gyu has experienced the first-team stage since April, the beginning of last season, with an opportunity. He made his professional debut against the Lotte Giants on April 4, when he pitched a surprise pitch with one walk and one strikeout in one inning. He then made his debut win with a relief win against Lotte on April 6, and pitched three runs (one earned) with five hits, two strikeouts, and three runs (one earned) in three innings against the Kiwoom Heroes on April 24. In the match against the Samsung Lions on May 4, he pitched one hit, one walk, and one strikeout in one ⅔ inning and succeeded in winning two games of the season.
As such, Hong Min-gyu marked 2 wins, 1 loss, 1 save, and an ERA of 4.59 in 20 games in the 2025 season. While throwing a total of 33 ⅓ innings, he marked a detailed performance of 37 hits (4 home runs), 15 walks, 17 strikeouts and 19 runs (17 earned runs) per inning (WHIP) of 1.56 and a batting average of 0.280 per inning. On top of that, Hong Min-gyu took the mound in three games and secured two wins at the 2025 Asian Baseball Championship in China in September last year. Throwing his pitches in nine ⅓ innings, he had six strikeouts. The ERA is 0.00.
Hong Min-gyu is considered a pitcher with good control. Based on the high strike rate, he often showed that he had an advantage in the match with batters. It is also said that the change-up that leads to a swing and miss is also excellent.
At the time of the designation of the compensation player, an official from KIA said of Hong Min-gyu, "He is a rookie player who made his debut in 2025, but he has performed well in the games he has taken the mound so far. "We expect it to be a starting resource in the long run because it has excellent control," he said. "In particular, the vertical movement level of the fastball is above the league average, and the completeness of the change-up is also high, which will be a great addition to the pitching staff in the future."
In fact, at the time of Hong Min-gyu's nomination, many said it was a "shocking choice" because he was evaluated as a prospect at the age of 19 at the time, rather than an immediate sense of power. However, he was immediately mentioned as one of the starting candidates after two seasons of joining the team. As such, the expectations of the KIA front and the field for him are high. Even if he is not a starter right away, if he can take charge of two to three innings in the bullpen, as manager Lee said, it is expected to be a great help to KIA's mound. How will Hong Min-gyu look in the Red Tigers uniform next season.
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*This content was translated by AI.
