'MLB Interest' Incheon Inchang High School's Yoon Ye-seong, Who Dreamed of Throwing 100 Consecutive Pitches at 150 km/h Rather Than Just a 157 km/h Fastball: "I Am a Starting Pitcher; I Will Try to Beat Ha Hyun-seung" [Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.

Yoon Ye-seong (17), the top right-handed fireballer from Inchang High School, dreamed of becoming a starting pitcher who can consistently throw fastballs exceeding 150 km/h even after the 7th inning.

Born in January 2009, Yoon is one year younger than his competitors, yet he threw a fastball reaching a top speed of 154 km/h in official games this year, rapidly emerging as a first-round candidate for the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft.

According to the Korea Baseball and Softball Association (KBSA), he has a sturdy build with a height of 191 cm and a weight of 105 kg, and his fastball released from a high release point is particularly attractive. According to Yoon, he has thrown unofficially up to 157 km/h, earning high evaluations of his potential.

A scout from a KBO team explained, "Yoon Ye-seong shows remarkable stamina, consistently throwing fastballs at 150 km/h several times. He still has some rough edges and is not yet fully polished, but he can throw a curveball, slider, and changeup quite well. He is a player expected to succeed as a starting pitcher."

At the 2026 4th Hanwha Eagles High School-College All-Star Game held on the 8th at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark, he did not deliver the performance as expected. Making his second appearance after Ha Hyun-seung (18, Busan High School), Yoon recorded one scoreless inning with no strikeouts, no hits allowed, and one walk. His top velocity was 150.8 km/h, lower than usual.

There was also the impact of not resting in time, having pitched 3⅔ innings (81 pitches) against Jeongam High School a week before his appearance and 1 inning (12 pitches) against Dongsan High School two days prior. However, Yoon did not offer excuses. On this day in Daejeon, scouts from 24 teams gathered, including 10 teams from the KBO League, 12 teams from Major League Baseball (MLB), and 2 teams from Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

Meeting StarNews at the venue, Yoon Ye-seong said, "I had the desire to hit my top velocity today, but my control was not good," showing an awkward smile.

It was tee-ball, which he encountered in elementary school, that led him down the path of baseball. Yoon recalled, "My interest in baseball started in the fourth grade of elementary school, but I began training professionally in the third grade of middle school. I didn't have a favorite team or player when I was young; I just liked playing baseball."

Yoon Ye-seong currently utilizes five types of pitches: fastball, curveball, slider, changeup, and splitter. After transferring from Gyeongdong High School, he began pitching seriously at Inchang High School and quickly became the ace.

He stated firmly, "The pitch I am most confident in is the curveball. I learned the knuckle curve from a senior who has already graduated. I tried modifying it according to my own feel, and it worked well as I wanted, so I continue to use it. I plan to practice more to make the remaining pitches—slider, splitter, and changeup—more perfect and to throw them exactly as I want."

This promising fireballer who admires the world's top player Shohei Ohtani (32, Los Angeles Dodgers) coincidentally wants to meet players in the KBO League who all belong to the Hanwha Eagles. Yoon emphasized, "Ohtani is my role model. I want to emulate his mindset in training. I want to learn from how he maintains control to prevent crises even when fielders make errors and the situation is dire."

He continued, "I really want to meet Moon Dong-ju. He is the player who throws the fastest ball. I want to ask him how he handles batters and how he maintains balance when the ball doesn't go where he wants. As for a batter, it is naturally Kang Baek-ho. He is the best batter in the KBO, so I have long wanted to compete against him."

Although his fastballs attracted the interest of MLB scouts, Yoon's goal is even grander. He stated confidently, "I do have the desire to increase my velocity beyond what it is now, but more than that, I want to become a pitcher who can consistently throw 100 pitches all at 150 km/h or faster. I consider myself a starting pitcher. I will prepare hard for the remaining three months and try to beat Ha Hyun-seung."

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*This content was translated by AI.