'Price tag: 400 million won, target: 1.5 billion won pitcher'... Hanwha's Wang Yen-cheng: "Aiming for 160 innings and a 3-point ERA. I want to start in the Korea Series"

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

His first professional victory, which he had waited six years for. After reuniting with his family and shedding hot tears, Wang Yen-cheng (25, Hanwha Eagles) recalled that moment once again and his eyes welled up. The year he spent at Hanwha held immense significance to him.

Taiwanese media outlet Now News reported on the 27th about Wang Yen-cheng's homecoming press conference held in Taipei, Taiwan. The enthusiasm of reporters on the scene was extremely high, reflecting Wang Yen-cheng's significantly elevated status.

Wang Yen-cheng, who had entered Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), failed to receive a call-up to the first division and stepped onto the KBO League stage through the newly established Asian quota for the 2026 season. By donning the Hanwha uniform, he secured $100,000 (approximately 133 million won).

He was the most dazzling among Asian quota pitchers. In particular, he was the best as a starting pitcher. He pitched in 26 games, working 133⅔ innings to record an 11-6 win-loss record and a 3.97 ERA. He posted the most wins on his team. Considering the period he missed due to his participation in the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, it was effectively a season where he could have pitched around 150 innings.

Immediately after the end of the season, what Hanwha rushed to do before appointing Manager Ryu Ji-hyun was re-signing Wang Yen-cheng. They signed him for $300,000 (approximately 400 million won), the highest amount for a second-year Asian quota pitcher. Although this represented a 200% increase, it remained at a cheap level considering his performance this year.

A watch was wrapped around Wang Yen-cheng's wrist. While discussing the story behind it, Wang Yen-cheng could not hold back his tears. It was a gift from his Taiwanese senior Song Zha-hao, which Wang Yen-cheng received after achieving his first professional victory on March 29.

He smiled and said, "My senior knew that I had waited a long time. I used to see him give gifts to other juniors and kept thinking, 'When will I get one?' Now I have finally received one." He had also been unable to hold back his tears immediately after his first win, and once again, recalling that period, his eyes reddened.

That victory was so desperately sought after, and it was Hanwha that gave him the opportunity. Wang Yen-cheng stated, "There were good things and bad things, but it was definitely a year with many harvests."

The warm welcome from his Hanwha teammates and fans is an unforgettable happy memory. He recalled how Kang Baek-ho, whom he happened to meet on the street, drove him home as he was about to go eat, bought him gopchang (beef intestines), and took him home, and how Ryu Hyun-jin looked out for him by saying, "Tell me if you need anything."

He also shared that Hanwha fans always gave him cake for free whenever he drank coffee at a cafe near the home stadium, and noted, "The most surprising thing was when I tried to pay the bill after eating at a restaurant during an away game in Seoul, and the waiter said he was a Hanwha fan and paid for my meal."

Wang Yen-cheng set his goals for next season at 160 innings and a 3-point ERA. Compared to this season's performance, these are modest goals, but merely maintaining this level would already signify a great success.

Only eight pitchers in the KBO League worked more than 160 innings this season, and among them, only four had an ERA of 3.99 or lower. This places him within the top five among KBO starting pitchers, whose average annual salary reaches approximately 15 billion won. In Wang Yen-cheng's case, his salary is $200,000 (approximately 267 million won), which is one-fifth of that level.

Furthermore, having signed a one-year contract with Hanwha, Wang Yen-cheng expressed his ambition, saying, "I want to advance to the Korea Series next year and pitch as a starter," and added, "I also want to stand on the ultimate stage of Major League Baseball someday."

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

*This content was translated by AI.View Original