The left-handed pitching prospect of the Lotte Giants, Kim Jin-wook (23), visited 'monster pitcher' Ryu Hyun-jin (38, Hanwha Eagles) with a determined heart during the last away game in Daejeon last September.

Although Ryu Hyun-jin is a senior with a 15-year age difference, they had never met until then. Although he hesitated a bit, Kim boldly approached Ryu and asked for advice on his signature changeup. Despite the sudden request from a junior player from another team, Ryu was happy to share his know-how.

Six months have passed since then. Kim Jin-wook, who is in the process of mastering his own changeup with hints from Ryu Hyun-jin's tips, made his starting debut in the exhibition game against LG on the 10th, pitching 4 innings with 1 hit, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts, and no runs allowed. He threw a total of 45 pitches, including 4 changeups. In the 4th inning, he used the changeup as his decisive pitch to strike out Austin Dean with a swing and a miss.

Meeting Kim Jin-wook before the exhibition game against Hanwha on the 13th, he noted, "While playing, I can't just throw the pitches I like. I need to use a variety of pitches, and the changeup should be thrown when the situation arises. It seemed okay to disrupt the batters' timing and also throw it for strikes. Of course, I need to throw and practice it more."

Kim Jin-wook, known for his powerful fastball that comes down from a high release point, primarily threw sliders and curves. He lacked weapons against right-handed batters. Last year, he showed potential with 4 wins and 3 losses, an average ERA of 5.31, and 87 strikeouts in 19 games (18 starts) over 84⅔ innings, but he couldn't shake off his weakness against right-handed hitters. His opponent batting average against left-handed batters was .223, and his OPS against them was .637, which is excellent, but his opponent batting average against right-handed batters was .290, and his OPS was .924, which is too high.

Therefore, Kim Jin-wook felt the necessity of a changeup as a weapon to handle right-handed batters, so he visited 'the master of the changeup,' Ryu Hyun-jin, during the last game of the season against Hanwha. Although he had never seen Ryu directly before, he gathered his courage.

Kim Jin-wook said, "I really wanted to throw the changeup. I asked to get at least a hint, and the senior was very generous with his answers. I was surprised that he mentioned theories and sensations different from what I had in mind. Later, I also asked (Seo) Hyung-jun and he said he practices with the same feeling, so I did the same," he said. He also practiced during spring camp with foreign teammates Charlie Barnes and Tucker Davidson, adjusting his changeup grip by bending his middle finger to raise it and strengthening his ring finger to increase the angle.

Kim Jin-wook noted, "I received advice from various players, but the most significant hint that allowed me to practice this was thanks to senior Ryu Hyun-jin. I had never met him until then. With a desperate heart, I approached him for help, feeling that I needed a breaking ball and that the changeup was important for me." He also asked Ryu about how to control speeds using not only the changeup but also curves, gaining a lot of knowledge in a short time.

On that day, for the first time, Kim Jin-wook met and talked to Ryu Hyun-jin, saying, "I guess so many players have asked him that he wasn't surprised at all and spoke to me casually," he smiled. Clayton Kershaw (Los Angeles Dodgers), who has won the Cy Young Award three times, also tried to learn from Ryu during every spring training, attesting to the fame of Ryu's changeup in Major League Baseball.

Kim Jin-wook, a 'super prospect' who was selected first overall in the second round in 2021, experienced growing pains with instability in his control and a monotonous pitching pattern. However, by last year, in his fourth year, he began to shed some of his outer layers, and this year, he is starting the season as the fourth starter. He stated, "Since I couldn't play baseball consistently, I changed my mindset. It's obvious that I need to perform well this year, but sometimes those thoughts can also work negatively. I will do my best with what I can do without getting tangled up in too many thoughts."

[OSEN]