The pitcher who was more steady than anyone else, but the pitcher who seemed to show that he had no business in front of the years.메이저사이트 Jang Won-jun (38, Doosan Bears) threw a new message to baseball fans.
Jang Won-joon started the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League home game against the Samsung Lions held at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on the 23rd and threw 70 pitches in 5 innings, scoring 7 hits, 4 strikeouts and 4 runs without a walk. With the team winning 7-5, Jang won his 130th career victory.
The pitcher who was responsible for the start of the Doosan Dynasty, but was forgotten after failing to accumulate a multiplier after the match against the LG Twins on May 5, 2018. The mere fact that it was Jang Won-joon’s appearance drew great attention.
The splendid heyday, 8 billion men’s ‘Ah, the old days’Jang Won-joon, who started his pro career as the first choice by the Lotte Giants in 2004, is a pitcher who has won 129 wins (114 losses) in his career in the KBO League. In particular, starting in 2008, he bagged double-digit victories for 8 consecutive seasons. Ahead of 2015, he obtained qualification as a free agent (FA) and wore a Doosan uniform for a total of 8 billion won for 4 years.
In 2015 and 2016, Doosan enjoyed the honor of winning for two consecutive years amid Jang Won-joon’s steady performance. In particular, in 2016, Doosan won 68 wins with only four outstanding starters, Jang Won-jun, Dustin Nippert, Michael Bowden, and Yu Hee-gwan, and had the most overwhelming season in KBO history with 93 wins, the highest ever.
Couldn’t it go against the flow of time? Jang Won-joon continued to play with 14 wins and 9 losses in 2017, but went downhill from the following year. In 2017, he was sluggish at the beginning and had to transfer his position to salvation. As of 2019, he lost even this opportunity. He showed potential for a comeback with the bullpen in 27 games last year, but he couldn’t stay with the team until the end of the season.
Why director Lee Seung-yeop? How about Wonjun Jang?It has been 2 years and 7 months (958 days) since the SK Wyverns match on October 7, 2020, and it has been more than 5 years since he won his last victory as a starter. After 1844 days of victory on this day (it was an emotional victory for the 1st team),
Jang Won-joon, who was seldom getting a chance and was being forgotten, even thought about retirement ahead of this season. However, there was a desire for a comeback in his heart, and new head coach Lee Seung-yeop reached out and once again sweated ahead of the season. Jang Won-joon, who prepared as a starter, was called up to the first team after Dylan Pyle and Kwak Bin were left out due to injuries.
Before the game, coach Lee Seung-yeop said, “I received a good report about Jang Won-joon from the 2nd team. Although his performance did not stand out, I was given a chance because his pitch was good.”
An uneasy start, but an indeterminate struggleJang Won-joon had a difficult ball count fight with first batter Kim Ji-chan in the top of the first inning, but caught a looking strikeout with a well-controlled fast ball outside. Jang Won-joon, who finished the first episode cleanly with a three-way crime, faced a crisis in the second episode.
Leading batsman José Pirella got on base by skillfully catching a low-flying ball. Kang Min-ho countered the flatly falling ball and was able to secure 1st and 3rd base. During Kang Han-ul’s surprise bunt, Yang Seok-hwan’s bad throw came out and allowed one run, and his shoulders became heavier. Jae-il Oh was struck out on a swing, but Lee Jae-hyun hit 2 RBIs and 2 bases at 1st and 2nd base. 1-4.
Still, it did not break easily. In the first out and third base, Ji-chan Kim was foul-flyed to the left fielder, and Hyeon-jun Kim was struck out on a swing and escaped the crisis. Even in the 3rd inning, he threw a perfect check ball at 1st base, but due to a defensive mistake, the runner was put in scoring position, but Kang Min-ho was hit by a floating ball to the first baseman and Kang Han-wool was grounded in front of the catcher to finish the inning.
After the team scored 5 runs and turned 6-4, Jang Won-joon, who came back to the mound in the top of the 4th inning, induced the shortstop to ground the ball even after being hit by Oh Jae-il, increasing the two out counts at once, and withstood the inning again. In the 5th inning, he threw only 8 pitches and finished the inning with a tripartite throw, fulfilling the requirements for a winning pitcher.
The top speed of the fastball is 141km/h. It was a reverse rotational two-seam fastball that was mainly used. He threw 31 pitches and his top speed was recorded at 140 km/h. Here, there was also a slider (24 pitches) and a changeup (10 pitches) and a curveball (1 pitch). It’s hard to say that any one ball was overwhelming, but he threw all the pitches exactly where he wanted with his skillful pitching. The 4 strikeouts he caught that day were also two-seam fastballs and sliders twice each.
After Jang Won-joon stepped down, Doosan added 1 point and 1 point was added. In the beginning of the 7th inning, 1 run was allowed, but the lead was maintained and the victory was harvested. It is the precious 130th victory added in 5 years, 1844 days to be exact. He was named as the 11th pitcher to reach 130 wins in KBO League history. He won at 37 years, 9 months and 22 days, becoming the oldest left-handed pitcher to reach 130 wins. The previous record was 34 years, 4 months and 18 days by Hanwha Song Jin-woo in 2000.
In addition, in the ranking of career starters, Song Jin-woo (163 wins), Yang Hyeon-jong (159 wins), Jung Min-cheol (157 wins), Kim Gwang-hyeon (15 wins), and Bae Young-soo (131 wins) ranked 6th with 128 wins.
Will spring come again to Jang Won-joon?Manager Lee Seung-yeop said, “I think it will change depending on the game situation. I haven’t talked about that with the pitching coach yet.” It’s the first game this week, so we have to judge by looking at the situation.”
Although there were not a few runs, there was more support from the other line, and in a situation where there was a shortage of starting pitchers, Lee Seung-yeop fulfilled the role that coach Lee Seung-yeop expected.
Coach Lee said earlier, “Depending on the results, I will decide whether there will be a change in the starting lineup or whether the starting lineup will be the same.” A difference appears. At the point where management is needed, you have to manage it. I will see the results and see the player’s condition.”
Kwak Bin is scheduled to return at the end of May. However, it is not easy to predict the exact time of return for Dylan yet. As Choi Seung-yong, who played as a starter at the beginning of the season and went down to the bullpen, returned to the starter amid disappointing performances, it is unclear whether Jang Won-joon will be given more opportunities as a starter. However, it is certainly welcome that another starting card has been created that can be used by coach Lee Seung-yeop.