"Shocked!"' Heissus, who was striking out Ohtani, was in fact a shock ball in DET → 3 runs in 1 inning including pushing

*This content was translated by AI.

The gust of KBO League reverse exports is disappearing like a mirage. Manuel de Heysus (30, Detroit Tigers), who surprised the world by striking out Shohei Ohtani (32, Los Angeles Dodgers) at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), which ended recently with Venezuela's victory, collapsed on the Major League mound due to poor control.

Heyesus took the mound in relief in the bottom of the fourth inning as the second pitcher after starting pitcher Justin Verlander in an away game against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2026 Major League Baseball at Phoenix Chase Field in Arizona on the 31st (Korea time), but he showed three hits, two walks, and three runs in one inning.

The first start was perfect. Heyesus, who took the mound in the bottom of the fourth inning with two outs and runners on second base, trailing 0-5, struck out Corbin Carroll, one of the best hitters in the Major League. Until then, the "myth of reverse export" seemed to continue.

However, the nightmare began in the fifth inning. He handled leadoff hitter Heraldo Perdomo well, but he was shaken by allowing back-to-back hits to Gabriel Moreno and Nolan Arenado. In the crisis of first and second bases, the real-time throw to Alec Thomas led to a timely double, opening the door for runs.

The real problem was control. Heysus, who lost his composure in a crisis, gave up back-to-back walks to Carlos Santana and Jordan Lawler. In particular, the walk given to Lawler led to a "push" run, undermining the trust of the Detroit bench.

Heysus, who later lost an additional point due to Detroit shortstop Javier Baez's poor defensive error, was eventually replaced by Brent Hutter with two outs and a full base, leaving a disastrous report card of three runs in one inning. Heyesus' ERA, who had one scoreless inning against the San Diego Padres on the 28th, soared to 13.50 due to the game.

Heyesus, who is familiar to domestic baseball fans, reigned as the top left-hander in the KBO league after passing through the Kiwoom Heroes (13 wins) in 2024 and the KT Wiz (9 wins) in 2025. After the end of the 2025 season, he failed to renew his contract with KT, but he achieved an "increase in status" of entering the 40-man roster and joining the opening entry based on his performance in exhibition games after signing a minor league contract with Detroit.

In particular, Heysus, who played for the Venezuelan national team in 2026 WBC, became a winning pitcher by setting the stage for a come-from-behind victory with two scoreless perfect innings, striking out Ohtani, the "God of baseball," in the quarterfinals against Japan. However, in the match held after returning to his team, he shook sharply. He was good against San Diego, but he exposed his ups and downs.

Concerns are growing over whether Heysus, who exposed his "ball ball" control difficulties in a hard-won big league opportunity, will be able to find a clue to a rebound.

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*This content was translated by AI.