A fastball average of no less than 154 km/h! Park Jun-hyun's dignity, with two scoreless outings in five innings, ERA 2.63, and breaking a five-game losing streak

*This content was translated by AI.

Park Jun-hyun (19), the "super rookie" and "fireballer" of Kiwoom Heroes, who was selected first overall in the 2026 Rookie Draft, succeeded in making a perfect comeback in his third game. Although he did not meet the criteria for a win, he went beyond a mere strong performance to serve as a "losing streak stopper" that snapped the team's five-game losing streak, signaling the emergence of a next-generation ace.

On the 10th, Park Jun-hyun started in the home game against KT at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, in the "2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League," recording five innings, two hits allowed, four walks, two strikeouts, and scoreless. It was a perfect pitching performance that washed away the regret from the Doosan Bears game on the 3rd at the same venue, where he pitched 3⅔ innings, allowed six hits, three walks, two strikeouts, and five runs (four earned runs). In a recent meeting with StarNews, Park reflected on the Doosan game, saying, "I think my balance wasn't good. I need to think about the reasons for the poor parts and prepare well for the next game," and he demonstrated this with a strong performance.

Park Jun-hyun's dignity was evident in his fastball velocity on this day. His four-seam fastball (49 pitches) reached a top speed of 157 km/h, with an average velocity of 154 km/h. He mixed in a slider and curveball, both reaching up to 145 km/h, to suppress KT's powerful lineup. He even showcased a slider-like breaking ball in the third inning, displaying the diversity of his repertoire. In particular, his fastball average velocity is evaluated as among the league's top tier this season, comparable to his senior teammate and "ace" An Woo-jin (27). Although Park's fastball sample size is somewhat small, it is on a similar level to Doosan Bears' Kwak Bin (27).

Park Jun-hyun's ability to handle institutional investor pressure also stood out on this day. In the top of the first inning with one out and runners on first and third, he threw a 142 km/h slider to Jang Sung-woo in a 2-ball, 2-strike count, resulting in a double play to the shortstop and overcoming the crisis. In the top of the fourth inning, with two outs and runners on first and third, he prevented KT's double steal, showing the concentration to allow no runs.

Park Jun-hyun left the mound with the score at 0-0, but thanks to his solid performance, he laid the foundation for the team's victory. Kiwoom, tied 1-1 in the bottom of the ninth inning, secured a 5-1 win thanks to Ahn Chi-hong's debut walk-off grand slam, breaking their five-game losing streak.

After the game, Park Jun-hyun shared his thoughts: "I threw a lot of pitches in the previous game, so today I approached the game with pitch count in mind. The veteran position players helped a lot with their defense behind me, which led to a good pitching performance of five innings scoreless."

Regarding his pitching content, Park explained, "I tried too hard not to give up runs in the first inning and ended up in a crisis. After that, I pitched with the thought of getting one out at a time. Thanks to the position players making double plays, we got a good result." He added, "With the team's losing streak growing longer, I went into the game with the resolve to break the streak no matter what. Although I didn't become the winning pitcher, I'm very happy that the team won," he smiled.

Kiwoom manager Seol Jong-jin (53) also praised Park, saying, "Starting pitcher Park Jun-hyun held the line scoreless for five innings, excellently fulfilling his role as a starter."

With this strong performance, Park Jun-hyun lowered his season ERA to 2.63. It had soared to 4.15 after the Doosan game, but he brought it back down to the 2nd-point range. In particular, he has already achieved two scoreless five-inning outings, following the April 26 Gocheok Samsung game. Even as a high school graduate rookie, he has pitched well with minimal runs over five innings.

Park Jun-hyun, expected to be a right-handed speed pitcher who will succeed An Woo-jin, is now moving beyond "a sense of impending success" to establish himself as a reliable figure in Kiwoom's starting rotation. The entire league's attention is focused on the super rookie's journey, which is rough but boasts overwhelming pitching power.

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*This content was translated by AI.