Although he suffered a loss after hitting a home run and receiving no help from the team’s batting lineup, Ryu Hyun-jin (36, Toronto Blue Jays) once again showed how a pitcher with a slow pitch can survive in the major league. showed it
A slow curve of 100.6 km/h followed by a 145.5 km/h fastball increased the ‘perceived speed’ and led to a looking strikeout.
It was also impressive that the proportion of cut fastballs (cutter), a ‘modified fastball’, were increased instead of fastballs (four-seam fastballs).
Ryu Hyun-jin started the 2023 American Professional Baseball Major League (MLB) visiting game against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum in Oakland, California on the 7th (Korean time) and gave up 5 hits and 2 runs in 5 innings. He allowed one walk and struck out five.
With two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning, leading 1-0, he was hit by a two-run shot from Carlos Perez, and Toronto’s batting lineup fell silent, resulting in Ryu Hyun-jin’s second loss (third win) of the season. On this day, Toronto lost 2-5.
Although there were some regrets, there were also impressive scenes.
The highlight of the day’s pitching was the scene where he threw a series of slow curves of 109.9 km/h (strike) and 100.6 km/h (foul) to the first batter Jordan Diaz in the bottom of the second inning with 2 balls and 1 strike, and then struck out a looking striker with a 145.5 km/h fastball.
This season, Ryu Hyun-jin is attracting attention for his ‘slower curve’.
According to Baseball Savant, among 617 pitchers in the major leagues this year who threw more than 100 balls and included fastballs among their pitches, Ryu Hyun-jin’s average fastball speed was 88.3 miles per hour (142 km), ranking 607th.
His average curve speed is 69.3 miles per hour (111.5 km), the lowest among 349 players.
Ryu Hyun-jin, who already throws the slowest curveball in the major league, is trying to throw a ‘slower ball’.
Ryu Hyun-jin’s lowest curve speed per game this season is 69.4 miles per hour (111.7 km) against the Baltimore Orioles on August 2, 66.8 miles per hour (107.5 km) against the Cleveland Guardians on the 8th, 64.5 miles per hour (103.8 km) against the Chicago Cubs on the 14th, and 64.5 miles per hour (103.8 km) against the Chicago Cubs on the 21st. It was consistently ‘downward’ at 65.5 miles (105.4 km) against the Cincinnati Reds and 64.6 miles (104 km) against Cleveland on the 27th.
In September, he threw the slowest ball since entering the major leagues at 62.4 miles per hour (100.4 km) against the Colorado Rockies on the 2nd, and then threw a ‘very slow ball’ at 62.5 miles per hour (100.6 km) against Oakland on the same day.
However, Ryu Hyun-jin knows that as his curveball usage rate increases, his opponent will also prepare.
Ryu Hyun-jin lowered the proportion of curveballs as the number of innings increased during the game against Oakland.바카라
Ryu Hyun-jin’s curve usage rate on this day was 14% (11), which was lower than the season average of 18%. Instead, he increased his percentage of cutters to 30% (23), after an average of only 13% on the season.
The pitch that Ryu Hyun-jin threw the most against Oakland was a cutter. He threw 21 fastballs (27%), 18 changeups (23%), and 4 sinkers (5%).
In response to Ryu Hyun-jin’s cutter, Oakland batters put out their bats 15 times, and there were 7 missed swings (47% missed swing rate). Of the five strikeouts, two were caught with cutters.
Ryu Hyun-jin, who throws various types of pitches freely, is not bound by velocity and continues to pitch solidly by changing his weapons.