Jung Woo-ju lowered his head after giving up a two-run home run on the "sure-win pitcher's return day," suffering a second consecutive loss. This is an overly harsh trial for a 20-year-old pitcher. [Changwon Field Report]

*This content was translated by AI.

He returned to a familiar spot, but the result was painfully bitter. Jung Woo-ju (20, Hanwha Eagles), a 20-year-old pitcher, is facing an overly harsh time repeatedly.

Jung Woo-ju appeared in relief in the bottom of the 8th inning of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League away game against the NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park on the 27th, with both teams tied 4-4, and surrendered a game-winning two-run home run to Kwon Hee-dong, becoming the losing pitcher.

Just as the pain of his first professional loss in the game against the Lotte Giants on the 21st (3⅓ innings, 4 earned runs) as a starter was fading, he was saddled with a second consecutive loss.

Jung Woo-ju, a graduate of Jeonju High School, was noted as an elite high school-level prospect and drew attention from his professional debut. He was evaluated as someone who could immediately fulfill his role in the professional league, won the grand prize at the 2024 Futures Star Awards, received the second overall pick in the draft, and was highly anticipated after securing a signing bonus of 500 million won.

In his debut season, Jung Woo-ju was responsible for 53⅔ innings in 51 games, posting 3 wins, no losses, 3 holds, and an ERA of 2.85. After the season ended, he earned the national team jersey and was expected to participate in the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), quickly becoming a pitcher who immediately rose to prominence.

However, perhaps because he was not accustomed to a long season, or due to a sophomore slump, Jung Woo-ju has been unable to recapture his previous form. Earlier in this season, he appeared in relief in 18 games, limiting his ERA to 6.75, and Hanwha hoped he could find a turning point by starting.

Although he was given three opportunities as a starter, Jung Woo-ju allowed 7 earned runs over 9 innings and failed to regain his previous form. Ultimately, Manager Kim decided to use Jung Woo-ju again in the bullpen.

Ahead of the game, Manager Kim Kyung-moon met with reporters and said, "If we are leading in today's game, I think we will use (Jung) Woo-ju." He added, "Actually, I initially considered using him as the closer, but since (Lee) Min-woo is performing well, there is no need to disrupt the team. So I thought we could keep Min-woo in that role until he is ready and use Woo-ju around the 8th inning. After discussing with the pitching coach, I thought Woo-ju would come out in the 8th if we were leading."

Although they were not leading, it was natural for the sure-win pitcher to enter in a close situation. The assumption of "if we are leading" itself implies the intention to use him as the sure-win pitcher.

The problem is that Jung Woo-ju appears to be unprepared. He started nervously by issuing a walk to leadoff batter Ahn Jung-yeol, but then struck out Park Geon-woo with 5 fastballs out of 6 pitches, appearing to catch his breath.

He created a more favorable situation against Kwon Hee-dong. The first pitch was an outside fastball, and the second was a slider inside, putting him in a favorable 0-2 count. The third pitch, a 149 km/h fastball, was well-located on the lower inside corner, but the ball hit by Kwon Hee-dong soared straight to the left field, resulting in a game-winning two-run home run.

Hanwha eventually called up Kim Jong-soo to replace Jung Woo-ju. Jung Woo-ju, who handed over the ball and headed to the dugout, took off his cap, sighed, and looked up at the sky. Even while receiving encouragement from teammates and heading to the dugout, he could not hide his regret. For a while, he could not watch the game and remained in anguish with his head bowed.

Kim Jong-soo finished the inning without allowing additional runs, but Hanwha failed to take the lead in the top of the 9th, leaving Jung Woo-ju with the loss.

Last year's closer and the 2024 first overall pick, Kim Seo-hyun, has been unable to resolve his control issues and is spending time in the minor league for reorganization. Moon Dong-ju, the 2023 first-round pick, was ruled out early for the season due to shoulder surgery. Another top-round pick, Jung Woo-ju, is also facing a prolonged difficult time.

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*This content was translated by AI.