Is the 155km fastball also useless → Criticism of the beauty towards Jang Hyun-seok, "One walk per inning, control of the ball becomes difficult."

*This content was translated by AI.

Local attention is cooling toward Jang Hyun-seok (21, Single A under the LA Dodgers), who moved to the U.S. stage with much expectation. Despite finding a fast speed limit in the mid-150km range, chronic ball control anxiety is holding back, according to an evaluation.

The Athletic, a U.S. sports media outlet, mentioned Jang Hyun-seok on the 11th (Korea Standard Time) by ranking prospects for each of the 30 major league teams. Jang Hyun-suk was not mentioned in the top 20 prospects of the Dodgers, but Jang Hyun-suk's name was written through the item "Other Matters."

The media pointed out, "Right-hander Jang Hyun-suk had a disappointing first season of his debut." He even pointed out that the command was rather regressed compared to the time when the ball power was at its peak.

According to the report, Jang Hyun-seok was accepted in terms of ball speed by recording a maximum speed of 96 miles (about 155 kilometers) in the AFL (Arizona Autumn Education League) held last fall. However, in the AFL, where powerful batters gathered, Jang Hyun-seok's fastball was frequently connected with a positive hit.

According to Baseball Reference, Jang Hyun-seok had as many as 11 hits during nine innings in five AFL games, three of which were home runs. The arrest may have returned, but the location is not sophisticated, so it seems to have become a "good ball to hit."

What is more serious is control. The media pointed out that Jang Hyun-seok gave up as many as nine walks in nine innings in the AFL. In other words, one runner was sent out per inning. This is higher than the 17.3% walk rate that Jung Hyun-seok showed during the regular season of the Single A minor league. The Athletic criticized Jang Hyun-seok with a cool head, saying, "Not only has he had few chances to take the mound in the past two years, but he has never experienced real success on the mound."

Jang Hyun-seok, a native of Masan Yongma High School, was considered the biggest fish in high school and was considered the biggest fish in the 2024 KBO League rookie draft, but suddenly chose to enter the U.S. The motives for the draft include Hwang Jun-seo (21) of the Hanwha Eagles and Kim Taek-yeon (21) of the Doosan Bears.

Jang Hyun-suk was expected to be the "second Park Chan-ho" when he signed a contract with the Dodgers in August 2023 on the condition of a down payment of $1 million (about 1.5 billion won). In particular, ahead of the 2025 season, it was well received to the extent that it ranked 21st as a prospect for the Dodgers evaluated by MLB.com , the official website of the Major League Baseball. However, expectations seem to be falling as he recorded an ERA of 4.65 without winning 13 Single A games in the 2025 season.

Eventually, the task given to Jang Hyun-seok in the 2026 season became clear with ball control stabilization. Above all, as he has the ability to throw fast balls in the mid-150km range, he is expected to be able to rise to the upper level of the minor league only when he reduces his walks and clears his sophisticated control.

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*This content was translated by AI.