LG Twins pitcher Son Ju-young excelled with a stellar 7-inning performance from his first appearance of the season. He became the first starting pitcher of the season to complete 7 innings, a feat that all 10 foreign pitchers who started in the opening game failed to achieve.

On the 23rd, Son Ju-young appeared as a starting pitcher in a game against Lotte at the Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, allowing only 1 hit over 7 innings while issuing 2 walks and striking out 5, resulting in a win. He pitched 85 pitches through the 6th inning and took the mound again in the 7th, ending the inning with a three-up, three-down performance. He threw a total of 96 pitches. His fastest fastball was clocked at 150 km/h, with 46 fastballs, 24 curves, 14 cutters, 7 forkballs, and 5 sliders.

Lotte started 7 right-handed batters against left-hander Son Ju-young, but he continued his reputation as a "Lotte killer." Son Ju-young has been strong against Lotte, holding a record of 2 wins and no losses with an earned run average of 1.80 in 3 games. It was the same on this day. After 2 outs in the 3rd inning, he dominated the Lotte lineup with 13 consecutive ground balls.

In the 1st inning, he allowed leadoff hitter Yoon Dong-hee to reach base on a walk but found his rhythm by inducing a ground ball double play from Son Ho-young. In the 2nd, he allowed the leadoff batter RAY on base via a walk but recorded 2 outs on a ground ball from Na Seung-yeop.

After 2 outs in the 3rd inning, he allowed a double to Jeon Min-jae, marking the only time he permitted a runner to reach 2nd base. He ended the inning by getting Yoon Dong-hee to fly out to first base. From the 4th to the 7th innings, it was all three-up, three-down. The Lotte batters were powerless against his powerful fastballs, big-breaking curves, cutters, and forkballs.

After the game, Son Ju-young said, "I never expected to pitch for 7 innings, but I threw 85 pitches through the 6th. Since the score gap was 5 runs, I think I kept pitching. If the score had been higher, I probably wouldn’t have pitched anymore," adding, "I still had strength left. I didn’t exert much effort in the 1st and 2nd innings, so I had plenty of energy left."

None of the 10 foreign pitchers who started in the opening game managed to pitch 7 innings. Son Ju-young was the first to pitch 7 innings and did so without allowing any runs. The impressive feat of 13 consecutive outs was also noteworthy.

Son Ju-young explained his pitching, saying, "At first, my fastball command wasn’t there. I was losing some control. I tend to find my rhythm during games, and Pitching Coach Kim Kwang-sam told me, 'You need to attack more with your fastball. You have the strength, and even if they are targeting your fastball, they’re going to foul a lot, so be aggressive.' That was key. I aimed low and the velocity came out well, and I had a good count." He continued, "In the early stages, the curve was decent. The forkball was also effective when thrown low. Dong-won didn’t signal for the cutter at first. He was giving me a lot of sliders. I thought he might be saving it for later, but when I asked him afterward, he said that was indeed the case. I think I felt more comfortable mixing in the cutter from the 4th inning."

With his 7-inning scoreless victory, his career record against Lotte improved to 3 wins and 1 loss with an earned run average of 1.23. Son Ju-young said, "Since it's my hometown team, I think I paid more attention and pitched harder. I've been watching this team since I was young, and I have a desire to perform better whenever I face Lotte."

Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop noted before the game on the 23rd, "The early part of the season is important. The order of the starting pitchers was set based on their performance against strong teams. For Ju-young, there’s another meaning. In fact, we struggled with whether to place him or Im Chan-kyu as the second starter. Chan-kyu pitched decently against Lotte, so he could have been the second starter. But if we want to make Ju-young the starter for next year’s opening game, we placed him in the second starter position."

Since last year, Manager Yeom has confidently stated that Son Ju-young will grow into the left-handed ace of the national team. Last year, Son Ju-young, who played his first full-time season, recorded 9 wins and 10 losses with an earned run average of 3.79 over 28 games. He pitched 144⅔ innings, filling the required innings for the first time.

This year, he is expected to grow even more while matching up against foreign pitchers as the second starter. Manager Yeom stated, "Ju-young has the capability to win 13 games this year. I expect him to pitch around 170 innings."

Since the start of spring training, Son Ju-young has mentioned his goal for the year as "15 wins and 160 innings." After hearing Manager Yeom's comment about the 170 innings, Son Ju-young said, "I had the goal of 160 innings, but it would be great if I could pitch 170 innings."

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