'ERA 3.55→5.24' 65-year-old pitching coach also departs, vanishes from the first division;: "Why wouldn't there be stress? Recovery comes first" [Daejeon Field Report]

*This content was translated by AI.

"Why wouldn't there be stress?"

With the appointment of Kim Kyung-moon (68) as manager, Yang Sang-moon (65), the pitching coach who had worn the Hanwha Eagles uniform alongside him, has disappeared from the first division. The veteran manager, who has experienced every kind of hardship, expressed sympathy for the coach facing a difficult situation.

On the 28th, ahead of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League home game against SSG Landers at Daejeon Hanwha Life Bolt Park, Hanwha announced the removal of Yang Sang-moon from the roster.

The club explained, "Coach Yang Sang-moon is scheduled to be removed from the roster today due to health reasons," adding, "Coach Yang requested this after meeting with the manager upon arriving at work."

Manager Kim Kyung-moon told reporters before the game, "He came and spoke to me today. Why wouldn't there be stress? His operated leg is not doing well. He didn't show it openly but kept going back and forth to the dugout. Suddenly, due to unavoidable circumstances, the coach is now coming to the field."

While the surface reason was health-related, Manager Kim mentioned the stress issue. Looking at Hanwha's mound situation, which has changed 180 degrees from last year, it is easy to understand.

Last year, Hanwha achieved the remarkable feat of reaching the Korean Series for the first time in 19 years, with a solid mound strength at its core. Last season, the team's ERA was 3.55, ranking first, but this season it has dropped to 5.24, placing last.

The starting rotation was expected to weaken as Cody Ponce (Toronto) and Ryan Weiss (Houston) departed simultaneously, but the bullpen's struggles are painfully severe.

After the season ended, Hanwha focused on strengthening its lineup, successfully signing free agent Kang Baek-ho, who leads the league in RBIs, to a four-year, 10 billion won contract. However, it is regrettable that they could not prevent the exodus of key pitchers during this process. They lost internal free agent Kim Beom-soo, and Lee Tae-yang (KIA), who was not actively utilized last year, was selected in the second draft, while Han Seung-hyeok (KT) left as a compensation player for Kang Baek-ho's free agency. The team focused more on strengthening the lineup, believing they could entrust the bullpen to pitchers other than the core ones.

Having faced every team once, Hanwha has played 25 games so far, with a record of 11 wins and 14 losses, placing seventh. With the team's ERA ranking last, the bullpen is particularly struggling with an ERA of 6.62, clearly the lowest.

In particular, the disappointing bullpen performance is closely linked to mound management. Hanwha is the team that makes the most frequent pitching changes. While their bullpen innings (103 1/3) trail behind first-place SSG (107 innings) and second-place Samsung (103 2/3 innings), their number of bullpen appearances stands at 125, showing a significant gap compared to SSG (97 appearances) and Samsung (104 appearances), making them overwhelmingly the highest.

Because they often enter the game with runners on base, frequent runs by pitchers lead to more unstable situations, resulting in the bullpen having an overwhelming 98 walks and hit-by-pitches, ranking first. Kim Seo-hyun, who served as an elite closer last year, struggled with an ERA of 9.00 and was eventually sent to the second division, while Jung Woo-ju is also struggling with an ERA of 6.94. There is no way to avoid questioning the coaching staff's responsibility.

Manager Kim could not give a definite answer regarding the future of the pitching coach position. When asked if the two coaches would be recalled to the first division once they recover, Manager Kim held back, saying, "We will have to see," and added, "For now, resting and taking care of their health comes first."

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*This content was translated by AI.