Park Jun-hyun firmly states, "A Samsung fan in my childhood? That was just my childhood. Now I belong to Kiwoom, so I will forget everything! My father's advice was..."

*This content was translated by AI.

A son has surpassed his father's team, the team his father played for. Park Jun-hyun (19, Kiwoom Heroes), the first overall pick in the 2026 KBO League Rookie Draft and a "top-tier right-handed rookie," announced the birth of a new dominant force in the KBO League by unleashing a stunning 159 km/h fastball in his debut game. Park Jun-hyun emphasized that he would forget his memories of cheering for Samsung during his childhood, along with the advice given by his father, Samsung 2nd Division coach Park Seok-min (41).

On the 26th, Park Jun-hyun started against the Samsung Lions in the "2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League" game held at Seoul Gocheok Sky Dome, pitching 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, recording 4 strikeouts, issuing 4 walks, and remaining scoreless to earn the victory. He laid the foundation for his team's 2-0 win. He set a historic record as the 35th pitcher in league history and the 13th high school rookie to secure a "debut start victory."

Coincidentally, the opponent was the team his father belongs to and his father's original team. Park Jun-hyun, who was a "Samsung fan" in his childhood while watching his father's games, now wears a Kiwoom uniform and has devastated the Samsung lineup. After the game, when meeting with reporters, Park Jun-hyun smiled and said, "Cheering for them when I was young is in the past," and firmly stated, "I will forget the past and pitched confidently as a Kiwoom pitcher."

Park Jun-hyun's performance was overwhelming on this day. His 158.7 km/h fastball against Ryu Ji-hyuk in the top of the 1st inning is the second-fastest pitch of the season, following An Woo-jin's 160.3 km/h against Park Seung-gyu in the Gocheok Samsung game on the 24th.

His crisis management skills were also unlike those of a rookie. Especially in the top of the 2nd inning with no outs and bases loaded, a desperate situation, he induced a double play to keep the score scoreless, which became the momentum for Park Jun-hyun to hold on until the 5th inning. Park Jun-hyun explained, "My father told me to come in and take the hit instead of issuing a walk. He told me to confidently look only at the strike zone and pitch confidently. Even if I got hit, I thought I should engage with the batter, so I kept aiming for the zone, and it led to a good result as I had hoped."

Park Jun-hyun had shown poor form in the exhibition games, posting an ERA of 16.20 over 4 games, and failed to make the opening day roster. Regarding this, Park Jun-hyun honestly said, "I was a bit disappointed when I was told to prepare in the 2nd Division," but then added, "However, I also thought it was better to prepare in the 2nd Division, so I think I prepared well thanks to a lot of help from Coach Jeong Chan-heon and Coach Im Gyu-bin in the 2nd Division," leaving a message of gratitude.

The appearance of his rookie draft classmate, Jang Chan-hee (19), as a Samsung starting pitcher, was also a major stimulus for him. Nodding in response to related questions, Park Jun-hyun manfully admitted, "Since he is a friend who entered as a rookie with me this time, I think I approached the game with the thought that we would definitely win today before the game even started."

The "first overall pick" Park Jun-hyun was urgently called up to fill the gap in the domestic starting rotation due to injuries to players like Jung Hyun-woo and Kim Yun-ha. However, Park Jun-hyun proved his ability with just one opportunity. Park Jun-hyun also said, "I definitely have the desire to start. I pitched well today, so I hope to get another chance," a sincere statement that challenges him to join the rotation competition in earnest.

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*This content was translated by AI.