He managed to escape from losing consecutive games, but ended up suffering defeat again. The Hanwha Eagles, which has been slowing down due to three wins and seven losses in the last 10 games, has one definite income. Hwang Jun-seo (19), a "special rookie" who proves that high expectations were not in vain.

Hwang Joon-seo pitched as a relief pitcher in the top of the fifth inning when his team was being dragged 1-3 against the KIA Tigers at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon on the 12th, throwing 41 pitches in two innings and striking out two without a hit.

The team failed to continue its winning streak and lost 4-8, but Hwang's pitching was as impressive as his. With starter Felix Peña out after just four innings, he was in charge of multiple innings and handed the ball over to follow-up pitchers without losing a point.

Hwang was the first overall pick in the 2024 rookie draft. Standing 187 centimeters tall and weighing 80 kilograms, he pitched 49 ⅔ in 15 high school league games last year, recording six wins and two losses with an ERA of 2.16 and striking out 16 runs (12 earned runs) with 36 hits, 16 walks and one hit without homers.

He was also selected as the winner of the Future's Star Awards hosted by this paper, and the selection committee said at the time, "He showed the most stable performance since his second year of high school and was the best in his third year," adding, "Although Kim Taek-yeon did well as a youth representative, I thought Hwang Joon-seo was the best in consistency." Hwang Joon-seo was once again recognized as the best high school player after receiving the Future Star Pitcher Award at the "Amateur Star Awards" hosted by Star News last year.

Hanwha's view was not wrong. The team's catcher who received the ball directly from the spring camp in Melbourne, Australia, was impressed.

Recognized for his potential, Hwang had tremendous experience even before he made his KBO league debut. He was selected as Team Korea and started a warm-up match against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Seoul Series. Hwang caught the eye by striking out four pitches against Miguel Vargas.

However, the team started in the second division. Kim Min-woo was selected as the last runner in a solid starting rotation that consisted of Ryu Hyun-jin, Felix Peña, Ricardo Sanchez, and Moon Dong-ju. "Kim Min-woo is the best," manager Choi Won-ho said, adding that he would consider when there is an empty spot in the starting lineup or when a bullpen pitcher needs to be replaced.

"I had a faster-than-expected opportunity." In the first game, Kim Min-woo, who pitched perfect pitching in five innings without allowing a single run, complained of symptoms, and Hwang Joon-seo started as a temporary starter. He pitched 73 pitches during five innings, and secured a starting win in his debut game by pitching three hits (one homer) with two strikeouts and one run. It was the first time in 18 years that he won a professional debut game as a member of the Hanwha Eagles since Ryu Hyun-jin in 2006. In the more than 40 years of KBO league history, there were only nine players in front of Hwang. It was the first step in Hwang's history to leave a strong impact.

Hwang Joon-seo, who heard the news, said, "I will now learn a lot from Hyunjin and work hard to continue the genealogy," adding, "My goal is to be in the first team. If I can be in the first team, I can do well in any position."

Despite a perfect debut win, Hwang Joon-seo moved to the bullpen. However, as he was confident, he also pitched perfectly as an unfamiliar bullpen pitcher. Hwang Joon-seo, who showed his potential as a long relief pitcher by pitching two strikeouts and no runs in two innings in an away match against the Kiwoom Heroes on the 6th, took the mound with one out and a runner on the first base in an away game against the Doosan Bears on the 10th. On the day left-handed pitcher Kim Bum-soo, who was one of the must-win teams, fell into a slump and was removed from the first-team entry, Hwang Joon-seo took the mound in the presence of a runner for the first time in his debut.

After allowing Jung Soo-bin to steal a base and allow Heo Kyung-min to walk, he faced a crisis of full base with one out as his missed fly ball induced by Yang Eui-ji became a lucky hit. Here, we could see Hwang Jun-seo's true face. Hwang Jae-hwan, the fourth batter who hit a three-run homer the previous day, threw three consecutive balls to the batter's box and was on the verge of throwing away, but he increased the count with consecutive fastballs and struck out swinging with a splitter he himself decided on in the full count. Then, at the batter's box, he caught a strike with two splitters, and froze Yang with a low fastball on his body to secure the inning.

The mission at the match against Kia on Tuesday was to digest multiple innings, which could make up for the early relief of starting pitchers. The team was poised to lose 2-3 points, but if Hwang held out well, it would have been sufficient to seek to reverse the situation in the latter half of the match.

In the top of the fifth inning, he turned leadoff hitter Choi Won-joon into a fly ball to the left field. He faced off Kim Do-young at a disadvantageous count of 3-0, but made a full count through successive fastballs, and managed to garner a strikeout with a fantastic splitter. In the face of veteran player Choi Hyung-woo, he also garnered a rookie strikeout by using a splitter hanging over the bottom of the zone after a full count match.

Hwang Joon-seo, who took the mound again in the sixth inning, pitched mainly on fastballs against the first batter Socrates Brito, before leading a grounder to the second base through a splitter. Lee Woo-sung allowed a walk after a full count, but after a series of six-pitch matches against Kim Sun-bin and Han Jun-su, he induced a grounder to the second base and a fly ball to the center field with a splitter. [메이저사이트](https://www.cmriindia.org)

He has an ERA of 0.93, while playing nine ⅔ in four games. As a bullpen pitcher, he has pitched perfect pitching, allowing no loss in three games and four ⅔ innings.

We need to examine the detailed records. Hwang recorded 11 strikeouts while giving up four walks. The ratio of strikeouts per nine innings is 10.24, and when limited to bullpen sessions, he is the first in his team and the eighth in the league. His batting average is 0.067, the second highest after Kim Jae-yoon's 0.061.

The secret lies in his boldness and highly perfect decision-making ball, which is not comparable to a rookie. Hwang is a left-handed pitcher who sprays fastballs with speeds of up to 150 kilometers per hour. On top of that, he is a rare left-handed pitcher who freely utilizes a splitter. Batters are being helpless as he can hold the count with his bold fastball that crosses the zone or uses all of the splitter that falls onto the home plate.