"Ryu Hyunjin → Strayley → Scooball." Thank you for Lotte's data part! 150km left-hander who's been wandering for five years, found a perfect change-up

*This content was translated by AI.

Lotte Giants left-hander Kim Jin-wook (24) once again excited fans by showing a change-up that fits him perfectly.

Kim Jin-wook is a left-hander appointed by Lotte as the first choice in the second round of the 2021 KBO Rookie Draft after graduating from Suwon Shingok Elementary, Chuncheon Middle School, and Gangneung High School. The ball and stamina based on the fast ball of up to 150km/h attracted a lot of expectations.

He expressed regret in his ball control and his use of change. He struggled for a long time with 136 games, 13 wins, 18 losses, and a 6.40 ERA with 16 holds in five seasons. In particular, last year, it seemed to end with the worst performance with one win and three losses and a 10.00 ERA in 14 games.

However, he made me look forward to the regular season by showing his progress once again from the spring camp. He pitched four innings of three hits, one walk, three strikeouts and one run in an exhibition game against KT Wiz on the 12th, and won against the Doosan Bears on the 19th by pitching two hits, two walks, five strikeouts and two runs in five ⅓ innings.

Changing the pitching rhythm helped greatly. Kim Jin-wook, who met with reporters after the game on the 19th, said, "The timing of throwing the ball has changed a lot, but I'm focusing on that. If you used a lot of power in the future, now you focus on it. Since then, (fastball) has been arrested well and the breaking ball seems to have accelerated," he said.

In both games, the changeup that fell in the right place against the right-handed batter was effective. Kim Jin-wook said, "I was able to feel the reaction of the batters because the ball speed came out better than the last game (against KT). He also said, "I had good change-up and breaking ball control, and catcher (Son) Sung-bin matched it well, so I solved it easily."

"The coach asked me to use it a lot at times like this (pilot games) from the last game. Sungbin also gave out a lot of change-up signatures. I think the batters swung a lot because they controlled better than I thought," he added.

Changeup, which received direct advice from Ryu Hyun-jin (39, Hanwha Eagles) last year, is gradually blossoming through the pitching design of Lotte Data Part. From Dan Staley, who played for Lotte in the past, to Tarik Scubal (Detroit Tigers), the Cy Young Award winner, who is now called the best pitcher in the Major League, the pitches of change-up masters gradually melted into Kim Jin-wook's change-up.

Kim Jin-wook said, "It's a little different from the changeup I learned last year. I'm using the slider recommended by the data team a little more actively. "I've been discussing with the data team since I was in the closing camp and the second division, but the angle of my wrist is not working well, so I'm throwing (changeup) in a slider format," he explained.

"There's a changeup that Staley threw. (The data team) gave me a video of Staley's past and said there's also a changeup like this." I learned that there is a change-up type that suits people who throw sliders well, such as Scuval change-up. I've been practicing steadily because I've given more feedback to make it easier to control," he said with strength.

If you have a clear winning shot against right-handed hitters, you can expect explosive synergy with previously good fastball and sliders. Kim Jin-wook is also taking steps step by step if he expects the synergy.

Kim Jin-wook said, "Coach, I have time to review with the video analysis team. "I'm sharing what I felt when I threw and receiving feedback when I had bad movements in the middle of the game," he said.

"I also ask a lot of questions if I have any concerns because (Kim) Won-joong and (former) Seung-min always help me in that area. The season is long and there are times when things go well and sometimes they don't, but he always advised me to come to the ballpark with the same mindset, so I try to think about it a lot."

Kim Jin-wook, who is in his sixth year as a professional, has yet to pass 100 innings. As such, the goal is to calm down and digest full season without losing composure. The Nagoya-Aichi Asian Games in the second half of the year will be a matter of later.

Kim Jin-wook said, "The biggest purpose for now is to play full season. That's the only thing. Since the Asian Games is something I can't do, I think there will be a good opportunity if I play the season well."

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*This content was translated by AI.