"(Kim) Seohyun, look at the center and throw it." I can't believe "33SV Closer" can't throw an S... "You have to get hit to grow more."'

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Seo-hyun (22, Hanwha Eagles), who ranked second in relief with 33 saves last year, took the mound in the bottom of the eighth inning, four points ahead. It was a crisis with two outs and runners on first and second bases, but there was no doubt that he would protect the victory. So it was an even more shocking defeat.

Kim Seo-hyun pitched 46 pitches in the bottom of the eighth inning with two outs and runners on first and second base in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League home game against the Samsung Lions at Hanwha Life Ball Park in Daejeon on the 14th, allowing one hit and seven outs, and losing three runs.

The maximum speed was 152 km per hour, but the strike rate was only 39% (18/46). He even sprayed fastball, sliders, and change-ups, but the ball that was not controlled posed no threat to Samsung's batting lineup, which had only one run until the seventh inning.

He did not rush to Kim Seo-hyun, who was shaking Samsung's batting lineup. Even though there was no single timely hit, he gave up the victory by allowing four runs with a pushout walk and one run with a wild pitch in the eighth and ninth innings.

He has already raised expectations by throwing balls up to 153 kilometers per hour in high school and proudly wore a Hanwha uniform as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 rookie draft. The down payment amounted to 500 million won, the same as Moon Dong-ju (23), who was a year older. Jung Woo-joo (20), who grew up as a national pitcher wearing a Hanwha uniform as the second-ranked player in the first round in 2025, was also the same as the down payment. Among them, only Kim Seo-hyun is having a hard time.

I had a hard time controlling my ball from my first season as a professional. He sprayed a fast ball close to 160km/h, but he could hardly put the ball where he wanted it. In the first team, he played only 20 games and left a regret with one save and an ERA of 7.25, without winning or losing.

During the second season, manager Kim Kyung-moon took over and brought Yang Sang-moon, the pitching coach, and the two helped Kim Seo-hyun pitch comfortably. Kim Seo-hyun, whose arrest plummeted in the process of finding his own pitching form, was revived as a fastball pitcher again and was active as a must-winner at the end of the season.

Last year, he took off as the main player. He played 66 innings in 69 games, recording 2-4-33 saves and 2 holds ERA 3.14. He was ranked second in the save category.

Coach Yang Sang-moon carefully confessed the story of Kim Seo-hyun after the end of the season. Appearing on Lee Dae-ho's YouTube channel "Lee Dae-ho [RE:DAEHO]" in November last month, he said, "I'm still nervous about my control," but added, "If it's that much of a ball, the inning will end even if I walk one, walk one, and strike out another." He said, "Let's play baseball like that, and throw it bravely."

He then said, "I told you to only look at the center and throw it. Seo-hyun said that his arms are low, so even if he throws it only in the middle, it becomes a natural sinking fastball and that becomes his main weapon. I didn't put much stress on my control," he said.

As a result, Kim Seo-hyun was reborn as the most powerful pitcher in the league. However, he was shaken at the end of the season. He was powerful with ERA 1.55 with 22 saves in the first half, but lost strength with ERA 5.68 and 11 saves in the second half. In particular, it was painful to lose the game after suffering two painful home runs in a game that allowed him to challenge for first place in the regular league at the end of the season. Since then, he has not been able to instill a sense of stability in good times as a closer in autumn baseball.

Regarding the slump at the end of the season, Yang Sang-moon said, "It wasn't because I just threw at the end, it was because I didn't throw at the end," adding, "If Seo-hyun's pitch distribution is 1m X 1m, it became 90cm X 90cm. Rather, Seo-hyun's characteristics can be lived only when he flies wider, but it has been narrowed down. "I can say that my control has improved, but because of that, I had a hard time after hitting a home run from the second half," he explained.

The teacher said that he had to grow up by getting hit a lot, but did the memory of getting hit on a stage with too much pressure become a trauma. Kim Seo-hyun is showing difficulty in throwing strikes this season.

Except for the game on the 14th, when he pitched unbelievably with his eyes, he is having difficulty actively competing with batters. Even before the game on the 14th, the hit rate was only 0.154, but the number of pitches per nine innings reached 12.6. Including the game on the 14th, the number soared to 21.

You can understand the walks he gave to Choi Hyung-woo, Lewin Diaz and Ryu Ji-hyuk in the eighth inning, the most powerful game in Samsung this season.

The bigger problem was at the beginning of the ninth inning. There is no excuse for not being able to stabilize while taking the mound again in the usual save situation with a 5-4 lead and facing the lower lineup. Kim Seo-hyun, who gave a straight walk to No. 9 hitter Kim Jae-sang, caused a full base crisis by hitting Park Seung-gyu with a hit ball, and eventually allowed Choi Hyung-woo to walk again, allowing a tie and Lee Hae-seung to come from behind.

There is no pitcher without a walk. No matter how good a pitcher's control is, a walk can be allowed if he gives up a walk while playing a difficult game and his control is shaken.

However, it is not an easy matter to pass by that the main finish, who experienced the second place in saves, failed to properly compete with not only the central lineup but also the lower lineup. Kim Seo-hyun, now, needs "courage to be beaten and hated." Of course, it is uncertain whether he will be able to continue his finishing position as he is now. The first thing to do is to regain confidence in other roles such as chasing teams or in the Futures League.

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*This content was translated by AI.