"It's fine to give him a spot in the starting rotation" Manager smiles despite KBO 10th historic record failure! Found a 20-year-old ace following in the footsteps of Ryu Hyun-jin and So Hyoung-jun

*This content was translated by AI.

Kim Min-jun (20, SSG Landers) narrowly failed to reach the historic milestone of 10 wins as a high school graduate rookie starter, yet the manager's face was full of smiles.

SSG Manager Lee Seung-yong (55) said ahead of the home game against the LG Twins on the 29th at Incheon SSG Landers Field in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season, "The performance Kim Min-jun has shown since his return is such that anyone would agree he deserves a spot in the starting rotation," adding, "I am also very excited to see how much more he will grow. He is a player I look forward to."

It is not without regret. Had Kim Min-jun added a win in his previous game against the Samsung Lions on the 24th, he could have continued challenging the meaningful record of 10 wins as a high school graduate rookie starter. In KBO history, only nine high school graduates have achieved 10 wins as starters in their debut season. There has not yet been a single case in SSG's team history.

The most recent examples were Ryu Hyun-jin (39, Hanwha Eagles) with 18 wins in 2006 and So Hyoung-jun (25, KT Wiz) with 13 wins in 2020. Both grew into national team aces, and Kim Min-jun has shown the potential to continue that lineage.

However, setting aside the record challenge, what he showed from his first season was remarkable in itself. Kim Min-jun received nationwide attention for his game management skills and strikeout ability since his days at Daegu High School. In his senior year, he appeared in 20 games, recording a 10-0 win-loss record with an ERA of 2.16, striking out 104 batters over 78⅔ innings. His strikeouts per nine innings reached 11.9.

As a result, he was drafted in the first round, fifth overall, in the 2026 KBO Rookie Draft to wear the SSG uniform, and before joining the team last November, he received the Grand Prize in the baseball category at the "2025 Futures Star Awards" hosted by StarNews.

SSG's expectations were also high. Manager Lee designated Kim Min-jun as the fifth starter from spring training. Although he was a rookie who had not yet pitched a single game in the first division, Manager Lee highly evaluated his potential early on, saying, "Why didn't I think of him as a rookie?"

The problem was his right shoulder. Pain occurred ahead of the season start, delaying his debut until June. After returning to the mound, he showed an adaptation speed that made the time lost to injury feel regrettable. In the game against the Jamsil Doosan Bears on July 7, he achieved his first career quality start (QS: six or more innings pitched with three or fewer earned runs) by going scoreless for six innings, also breaking the team's nine-game losing streak.

From the game against the Lotte Giants on July 23 until the Samsung game on August 18, he recorded five consecutive quality starts. This was the second-longest consecutive QS record in history for a high school graduate rookie. By adding a slider newly refined during the season to his fastball that exceeded 150 km/h, his game management ability, which had been a strength since high school, shone even brighter.

He continued with stable pitching, finishing the season with 7 wins and 3 losses in 15 games, an ERA of 3.65. Over 79 innings, he allowed 34 walks and struck out 62 batters, with a WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) of 1.23 and a batting average against of 0.216. All of this was the record left by a pitcher stepping onto the professional stage for the first time, despite spending about three months injured.

That is why the manager feels even more regret. With Kim Kwang-hyun (38) also out due to surgery early in the season, SSG faced significant difficulties managing its starting rotation in the first half as Kim Min-jun was also sidelined by injury. Manager Lee smiled and said, "It was very difficult for our starting rotation in the first half because Kim Min-jun was also injured," adding, "While I have personal regrets, having had time to prepare, I feel we found a starter who can shine even brighter next year."

Although the number 10 wins is far away, he has already achieved the most important goal of his debut season. SSG has also found a spot in its starting rotation for next year. Manager Lee said, "(Kim) Min-jun is scheduled to pitch two more times. We are considering him as the starter for the last home game along with Abila," and added, "I think next year, Min-jun will play a full season, feel more things, and show better performance."

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

*This content was translated by AI.