"I want to throw a bending ball, too.""→Fitted with sweeper right away → 10K achieved, 'This is why Ryu Hyun-jin'." Amazing acquisition ability of a 39-year-old pitcher

*This content was translated by AI.

Ryu Hyun-jin (39, Hanwha Eagles), who scored double-digit strikeouts for the first time in nearly 14 years to win the season, had one secret. He added a new pitch at an age that would not be strange to retire immediately.

Ryu Hyun-jin started the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League away game against SSG Landers at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 7th and threw 93 pitches in six innings, allowing four hits, two walks, 10 strikeouts, and two runs to win his first win of the season.

He also set a record of 1,500 strikeouts for the seventh time in KBO history, which was the oldest and the smallest game record. In addition, he also recorded double-digit strikeouts for the first time in nearly 14 years since the final game (12 strikeouts in 10 innings) in 2012, the year just before entering the Major League.

After the game, Ryu Hyun-jin said, "I have no greed for strikeouts at all," but added, "It would be nice to have such a day at a time. It's good to have a double-digit strikeout for the first time in a long time," he said.

There is a reason for that. Because my body condition is not the same as before. Ryu Hyun-jin said, "Even then, I didn't throw it with the intention of striking out. Unlike now, there has been a change in restraint because it can be used when using strength, but it seems to be difficult these days. "Now I have a very poor ability to strike out, so I have to trust and throw the fielder unconditionally," he said.

Nevertheless, he was even more surprised because he struck out double digits. He said he trusts the fielder and throws it, but he is also making no effort to solve it on his own. One of them is the study of the oral species.

Ryu Hyun-jin threw the most 41 pitches, including a fastball with a maximum speed of 146 km/h, 18 changeups and 13 cutters and curves, and the sweeper also mixed 8 pitches.

This is a pitch that has not been found in Ryu Hyun-jin. "Monster Killer" Choi Jeong-do, who stole a two-run home run from Ryu Hyun-jin in the game on the 7th, said, "I didn't write it for me, but I think I threw a little to left-handed hitters," adding, "I was only lucky in my first at-bat, but I couldn't finish it after that. Hyunjin is always bad at throwing. He always throws well."

Park Sung-han, the No. 1 batting average (0.500), who had not struck out a single strikeout before, brought up his secret weapon. Park Sung-han's bat split through the air in a sweeper that bends into an unexpected trajectory. It was his first strikeout in as many as nine games.

In addition, he confused hitters by throwing sweeper in the right place against left-handed hitters. As a result, they were able to play 10K games.

Ryu Hyun-jin revealed the secret of the sweeper through the club's YouTube channel Eagles TV. "I didn't learn anything, and I practiced after watching Wang Yancheng's ball, thinking, 'I wish I had a ball that bends like that,' but I threw it right away because I thought it was a little similar, and I think it worked," he said. "Since it doesn't work with strength, it turns into an octogenarian tone and is preparing to throw all the pitches." Other types of pitches will be introduced soon, but it's a secret," he said.

This is the answer that Ryu Hyun-jin has. He made the changeup he learned from Koo Dae-sung as his main weapon when he was a rookie, and even after entering the Major League, he learned the cutter grip thrown by Clayton Kershaw, which he enjoyed with high-speed sliders that year. Recently, Kershaw also expressed admiration for Ryu Hyun-jin's amazing acquisition ability, recalling what happened at the time.

At the age of 40, he is equipped with a sweeper this time. It even said it was planning to add another pitch. Amazing acquisition and application skills, and furthermore, a passion for constant development. This is why Ryu Hyun-jin is still considered the best pitcher in the league.

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*This content was translated by AI.