Can the ‘lightning fastball baton touch’ happen?
The biggest hit for the Hanwha Eagles in the first half of the 2023 season was Moon Dong-ju (20), who started full-time as a starting pitcher. In 16 games (83 innings) in the first half of the season, Moon was a solid part of the starting staff with a 6-6 record and an ERA of 3.47.
Moon has been regarded as a top prospect since his high school days, throwing a fastball that topped 155 kilometres per hour. This season, he began to unleash that potential, throwing a fastball that reached 160.1 kilometres per hour against the Gwangju KIA Tigers on 12 April, which caught the attention of baseball fans.
Moon remained in the starting rotation ‘for the time being’ in the second half of the season, helping the team fight for a mid-table finish. However, an early ‘season out’ is already in the cards. Hanwha has already decided to place “restrictions” on Moon’s performance this season in order to “protect the prospect”. “Moon will start about seven games in the second half of the season,” Hanwha manager Choi Won-ho said, “and will finish the season with a maximum of 120 innings pitched.” According to the report, Moon is expected to finish the 2023 season before September.
Hanwha will need to fill Moon’s spot in the starting rotation with another pitcher. Currently, there are several candidates in the Futures (second) team, with rookie Kim Seo-hyun (19) being the most prominent.온라인바카라
Like Moon Dong-joo, Kim is a highly touted prospect with a fastball that can reach over 155 kilometres per hour. In the first half of the year, he was a bullpen pitcher with a 5.60 ERA, but in the Futures League, he started against the Goyang Heroes on the 6th and pitched 5.2 innings with 7 strikeouts and 1 run allowed.
Along with Jang Min-jae, Kim Seo-hyun is the favourite to break into Hanwha’s first-team rotation in the second half. If Seo-hyun Kim enters the starting rotation in the second half and performs steadily alongside Moon Dong-joo, it is possible that he could touch the baton after September. I wonder if Hanwha’s ideal scenario of Moon Dong-ju in the first half and Kim Seo-hyun in the second half will be fulfilled.