It's 159km banging, but I can't believe I'm the fifth starter…Moon Dong-ju is not perfect yet even with 2 innings of 3K perfect pitching.

Mar 14, 2025

It's 159km banging, but I can't believe I'm the fifth starter…Moon Dong-ju is not perfect yet even with 2 innings of 3K perfect pitching.
The KBO League exhibition game between Lotte and Hanwha at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 14th. Hanwha's Moon Dong-ju pitching. Busan = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.03.14/



"The sense of the game is not perfect yet. The preparations seem to be going well."

Hanwha Eagles' Moon Dong-joo's momentum is scary. He shot 159 kilometers in two exhibition games in a row.

Hanwha won 2-0 in an away game against the Lotte Giants at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 14th.




'78 billion FA' Um Sang-baek started and tied Lotte's batting lineup for five innings with 44 pitches. Lotte had Choi Hang's only hit on base without four outs.

Moon Dong-ju, who took the mound from the sixth inning, was even scarier. He overwhelmed Lotte batters by banging a 159km fastball. The record of perfect 3K in two innings, a maximum of 159km of fastballs, and an average of 155km shows.

But Moon was not satisfied. He said "I played my first multi-inning, and it's meaningful that I think I'm ready well."




It's 159km banging, but I can't believe I'm the fifth starter…Moon Dong-ju is not perfect yet even with 2 innings of 3K perfect pitching.
The KBO League exhibition game between Lotte and Hanwha at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 14th. Hanwha's Moon Dong-ju pitching. Busan = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.03.14/
Then "The restraint is coming out better than I thought. I think it's because we prepared well from the offseason to the camp"And yet "The game is not perfect yet. In order to boost his senses, he emphasized, "I want to focus on throwing more strikes from the next game."

On this day, Moon Dong-ju continued his training to become a starting pitcher by mixing curves, sliders (five) and fork balls (three) in addition to fastballs.

Hanwha manager Kim Kyung-moon, who met before the game, laughed about the previous day's 3-3 draw, saying, `It was a tie, but it felt like we won.' Although he was disappointed with three points and 20 leftovers, he expressed his satisfaction with Ha Joo-seok and Hwang Young-mook's good defense at the end of the game. He said "Why is the KIA strong? The replacements in the second half of the game were as good as the main players. "We are also not easy. There is not much difference in skills (between main and backup)."




In particular, about Moon Dong-ju, who has been in the bullpen for two consecutive games, "He will appear again in the sixth inning today. I think I'll throw more than 20 pitches. Let's wait and see again today."

On the 11th, Moon Dong-ju scored one scoreless inning with a maximum of 159.7km fastball against Incheon SSG Landers.

It's 159km banging, but I can't believe I'm the fifth starter…Moon Dong-ju is not perfect yet even with 2 innings of 3K perfect pitching.
The KBO League exhibition game between Lotte and Hanwha at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 14th. Hanwha's Moon Dong-ju pitching. Busan = Song Jeong-heon Reporter's songs@sportschosun.com/2025.03.14/
He was not intimidated by starting pitcher Um Sang-baek's good pitching. Choi Hang, who had the only hit against Um Sang-baek, struck out and treated Information Geun with a fly ball. Yoon Dong-hee caught a ground ball to second base after a close game of six pitches, including a 158km fastball.

In the seventh inning, he went to the full count with Ko Seung-min, but he did not allow him to get on base. He handled Son Ho-young with a fly ball to first base. Prior to Victor Reyes' at-bat, he agreed to face one more batter through a talk with pitching coach Yang Sang-moon. And even Reyes struck out.

It was perfect in two innings, 28 pitches, and a maximum speed of 159 kilometers. Currently, Hanwha's starting rotation has already been decided on the first to fourth starters, including the two foreign pitchers Weiss, Ponce, Ryu Hyun-jin and Um Sang-baek. The timing of Moon Dong-ju's joining the starting lineup, who throws a 159km fastball, is still undecided, but this is why head coach Kim Kyung-moon is confident about this season.



This article was translated by Naver AI translator.