Professional baseball player Kenny Rosenberg (27) of the Kiwoom Heroes showcased nearly perfect and overwhelming pitching in his second exhibition game.
Rosenberg started on 15th at the Seoul Gocheok Sky Dome against the Doosan Bears in the '2025 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League,' recording a victory with 5 innings, 2 hits, 2 walks, 7 strikeouts, and no runs allowed.
After walking the leadoff hitter Lee Yoo-chan in the first inning, Rosenberg struck out Kim Jae-hwan and quickly got two outs by preventing Lee Yoo-chan's stolen base attempt. He also struck out Kang Seung-ho, ending the first inning without any major crisis.
In the second inning, Rosenberg allowed a double to leadoff hitter Jake Cave. He caught Yang Seok-hwan with a line drive at shortstop, but a fielding error by second baseman Jeon Tae-hyun on Oh Myung-jin's hit led to a one out, runners on first and third situation. He walked Park Jun-young, but escaped the pressure by striking out both Kim Gi-yeon and Jung Soo-bin with two outs and the bases loaded.
Rosenberg perfectly shut down the Doosan top order of Lee Yoo-chan, Kim Jae-hwan, and Kang Seung-ho in the third inning. In the fourth, he struck out both Cave and Yang Seok-hwan. He gave up a hit to Oh Myung-jin but ended the inning by preventing a stolen base. In the fifth, Rosenberg returned to the mound and retired the bottom order of Park Jun-young, Kim Gi-yeon, and Jung Soo-bin in order. Leading 2-0, Kiwoom handed the mound over to Yoon Hyeon in the sixth inning, concluding his appearance for the day.
Rosenberg recorded 77 pitches, using 33 fastballs, 23 sliders, 13 changeups, and 8 curves. His fastball reached a top speed of 149 km/h and averaged 144 km/h. His strike rate was as high as 68.8%, showing aggressive pitching that overwhelmed the Doosan lineup.
As Kiwoom's only foreign pitcher, Rosenberg is expected to play the ace role, recording 1 win, 1 loss, and an earned run average of 2.00 over 2 games (9 innings) in the exhibition matches. On 9th, he struggled in his first appearance against NC, allowing 5 hits (1 home run), 1 walk, 4 strikeouts, and 3 runs (2 earned) over 4 innings, but completely shut down the Doosan lineup in the latest game.
After the game, Rosenberg noted, "I played my first game at home. The passionate cheers and shouts from the fans were amazing. I gained good energy from their support, and I think it helped me show a good performance today." He added, "In the early part of the game, the strike percentage was not good, which led to tough ball counts. However, I managed to use my breaking balls well under disadvantageous circumstances to collect strikeouts. The guidance from Kim Keon-hee and Kim Jae-hyun, who formed the battery with me, was also a great help."
Having overcome a bases-loaded crisis once and recorded two successful pick-offs at first base, Rosenberg expressed, "Many pitchers struggle when runners are on base, but I think I focus even more on every pitch I throw in those situations. So I enjoy competing when runners are on base."
On that day, despite being an exhibition game, a large crowd of 9,177 gathered at the Gocheok Dome. Rosenberg remarked, "The passionate support from the home fans will remain in my memory. I believe I will not forget today’s game. I will maintain this energy until the opening game," promising to deliver a strong performance this season.
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