'With' and forkball only, Lotte sees a 150km/h two-seam fastball starter appear... "His velocity was so good that I focused even more," even the batting champion-level national team player with a .300 average admitted.

*This content was translated by AI.

Lotte Giants rookie Kim Han-gyeol (20) sang a song of hope with impressive pitching in his first major league debut game.

On the 12th at Incheon SSG Landers Field, during the regular season match against SSG Landers as the visiting team in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League, Kim Han-gyeol recorded 4⅓ innings (29 pitches), allowing 2 hits, issuing 3 walks, striking out 5 batters, and surrendering 4 earned runs, suffering his first career loss.

Lotte failed to provide any run support for their young pitcher and lost 1-9. The eighth-place Lotte, whose winning streak was broken, finished with a record of 44 wins, 2 draws, and 56 losses, remaining in eighth place.

It was an unexpected appearance for the rookie. Na Gyun-an (28), who was scheduled to start that day, developed throat symptoms after waking up, so Lotte assigned Kim Han-gyeol, who was on the first team roster, to take over as the starting pitcher. Kim had originally been expected to make his debut against Busan NC Dinos on the 14th but instead made his first-team debut two days earlier.

However, facing SSG's well-developed lineup, Kim Han-gyeol pitched bravely. That day, he mixed a maximum-speed 150km/h two-seam fastball (41 pitches), forkball (22 pitches), and curveball (10 pitches), throwing a total of 73 pitches.

When an unfamiliar two-seam fastball pitcher appeared among Lotte's starters who were mostly known for their forkballs, even SSG batters were initially caught off guard. The top-order lineup consisting of Jung Jun-jae, Park Sung-han, and Kim Jae-hwan was retired on just nine pitches, with all the decisive balls being two-seam fastballs. In particular, national team shortstop Park Sung-han, who holds a .300 batting average, swung and missed at an outside two-seam fastball, becoming the victim of Kim's first career strikeout as a rookie.

In the second inning, he consistently threw outside to Jeon Ui-san and induced a swing-and-miss strikeout. Later, he issued a walk to Oh Tae-gon and allowed a two-run double down the right-field line off Choi Ji-hoon. However, Choi Ji-hoon hit the sinking ball well while his stance collapsed, and there were moments where Kim received no defensive support.

Facing SSG's top-order lineup again in the third inning, he struck out Park Sung-han and Kim Jae-hwan consecutively to record a three-up, three-down inning. He also closed out the fourth inning with another three-up, three-down sequence using powerful pitching, requiring only eight pitches.

Of course, as it was his first appearance, there were areas for improvement. His control wavered when runners were on base. Physical stamina was also a concern. In the fifth inning with one out, Kim Han-gyeol allowed a double to Jo Hyung-woo and then walked An Sang-hyun before being replaced by Lee Young-jae. Later, Lee Young-jae surrendered a two-run double to Park Sung-han, increasing Kim's earned run total to four.

Nevertheless, it was a passing grade for his first major league debut game. After the game, he even received praise from opposing batters. Park Sung-han of SSG, who struck out twice against Kim Han-gyeol that day, said, "Because the opposing pitcher's velocity was so good today (12th), I tried to focus even more at the plate. Looking back on the situation where I scored runs, among the good pitches thrown, there was only one mistake pitch from the pitcher, and I didn't miss the opportunity—I swung actively, which led to a good result."

It was also a game that proved Manager Kim Tae-hyung's (59) trust. Kim Han-gyeol is a right-handed pitcher who graduated from Munchang Elementary School (Gwangmyeong Little League), Seongnam Middle School, and Seongnam High School before being drafted in the sixth round of the 2026 KBO Rookie Draft as the 54th overall pick. His strengths include a maximum-speed fastball reaching 149km/h and a high-value splitter. In the Futures League, he recorded 1 win, 2 losses, an ERA of 4.15 in 11 games, with 27 strikeouts over 26 innings.

Even though the manager had previously stated that no matter how good a player's Futures League performance is, the first team is different, he showed unusual expectations for Kim Han-gyeol. Manager Kim said, "I saw him once during live practice, and his velocity was good. He wasn't originally on the (call-up) rotation list, but reports kept coming in. After watching the video, I saw that his breaking balls were also excellent. Although he still feels like a kid, his physical condition is great, so if we build his body systematically, he will be able to throw good pitches." He smiled.

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*This content was translated by AI.