'The 150 million won miracle': Wang Yencheng's team-first attitude, "I will keep pitching without rest" → Manager Kim Kyung-moon smiled broadly [Incheon field]

*This content was translated by AI.

Could there be a more devoted player than this? Kim Kyung-moon (68), manager of the Hanwha Eagles, could not hide his pleased smile at the selfless attitude of Wang Yencheng (25, Hanwha Eagles), who recently overcame a slump and secured a victory.

Wang Yencheng started against the SSG Landers at the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League road game held at Incheon SSG Landers Field on the 26th, throwing 93 pitches over 5⅔ innings to allow 6 hits, 1 walk, and 5 strikeouts while giving up only 1 earned run, securing his sixth win (3 losses) of the season.

Wang Yencheng, who had been pitching very steadily, suffered only one loss in five games after his victory against the Doosan Bears on the 22nd of last month (7 innings, 2 earned runs). During this period, he was pulled from the game early on three separate occasions.

That is why today's victory was even more encouraging. His efforts to escape the slump also shone through. Wang Yencheng said the day before, "I have been trying to fix my problems during training. I am happy that I prepared as usual and brought about good results."

Of the 93rd pitches, he threw 39 four-seam fastballs clocked at 150 km/h, with a low of 141 km/h, and 23 two-seam fastballs reaching a high of 149 km/h, accounting for 66.7% of his total, or 62 pitches, with fastballs. The power of the fastballs was clearly effective. The aggressive, fastball-heavy approach left SSG batters bewildered, allowing him to gain favorable counts, which further amplified the effectiveness of his forkball (13 pitches) and sweeper (12 pitches).

Manager Kim Kyung-moon praised, "There were times when luck didn't go our way, but he pitched well yesterday. We engaged batters a bit earlier. Having many full counts is tough for pitchers but also burdensome for fielders. Foul balls occur, and you have to throw more pitches. Then you're close to 100 pitches by the fifth inning. But yesterday, throwing with a more aggressive pattern was good."

Despite recent ups and downs, he is still fulfilling the role of an ace. In 16 games, he has pitched 80⅓ innings with a record of 6 wins and 3 losses and an ERA of 3.59. He ranks second on the team in both wins and innings pitched, behind Ryu Hyun-jin. As a pitcher acquired for just 100,000 dollars (about 153 million won), he can be considered Hanwha's best asset of the season.

Furthermore, he has expressed a desire to keep pitching without skipping any rotation spots. After securing the victory the day before, Wang Yencheng said, "There were times when my condition wasn't good, but if the manager asks, I will tell him I will keep pitching without rest."

In response, Manager Kim said, "I asked him, and he kept saying the same thing. However, we plan to pull him out a bit earlier and manage him better when his condition is not good."

Today, Hanwha lined up with Choi In-ho (left fielder), Yonatan Peraza (right fielder), Moon Hyun-bin (center fielder), Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter), Noh Si-hwan (third baseman), Heo In-seo (catcher), Lee Do-yoon (second baseman), Kim Tae-yeon (first baseman), and Sim Woo-jun (shortstop). Owen White will make the start.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.