It's hard to win one game until the day I take off my uniform, but it's the first time ever...That's why I'm a big pitcher

May 06, 2025

It's hard to win one game until the day I take off my uniform, but it's the first time ever...That's why I'm a big pitcher
KBO League Kiwoom and KIA at Gocheok Dome on May 5. KIA won 13-1 against Kiwoom. Yang Hyun-jong greets his fans after the game. Gocheok =Reporter Song Jeong-heon@sportschosun.com/2025.05.05/



It's hard to win one game until the day I take off my uniform, but it's the first time ever...That's why I'm a big pitcher
Yang Hyeon-jong applauding the fans who cheer after pitching in the sixth inning.
Yang Hyun-jong (37, KIA Tigers) overcame the ordeal and once again wrote the KBO's first history, showing the class of a great pitcher.

Yang Hyun-jong started the game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome on the 5th and led them to a 13-1 victory with five hits, two walks, five strikeouts and one run in six innings. Yang Hyun-jong was worried by losing three games, 30 ⅔ innings and a 6.75 ERA in six games he pitched until April. Yang Hyun-jong, who took his first appearance in May, won his first win of the season and reached 180 career wins, and achieved 2,100 strikeouts for the first time in KBO history. With 180 wins in KBO history, Song Jin-woo (210 wins) is the only mountain Yang Hyun-jong should overcome.

KIA batters gave strength to Yang Hyun-jong's shoulders by supporting 13 points with 15 hits in long and short innings, including tapping opposing starting pitcher Kim Yoon-ha (6 runs in 3 innings) from the start. bullpen Kim Gun-guk (2 innings) and Yoon Joong-hyun (1 inning), who took over the ball from the seventh inning, held on without losing a point.




Yang Hyun-jong faced a turning point by shaking off his winless bad luck in seven games of the season. I took a breather, but it's too early to be satisfied. This is because both Yang Hyun-jong and KIA have to rebound further with the victory on this day.

Despite facing unexpected trials at the beginning of the season, Yang Hyun-jong is still a focal point for the KIA starters. Ace James Nail (2 wins, ERA 1.09) and Adam Oler (4-1, ERA 3.43) are quite stable, and Kim Do-hyun (1 wins, ERA 2.86) who joined the starting rotation in earnest this year is showing good performance. Now, if Yang Hyeon-jong continues his pitching as he did on the 5th, it is expected to be a great boost to KIA, which is in seventh place before the game on the 6th.

It's hard to win one game until the day I take off my uniform, but it's the first time ever...That's why I'm a big pitcher
KBO League Kiwoom and KIA at Gocheok Dome on May 5. KIA Yang Hyun-jong is pitching as a starter. Gocheok =Reporter Song Jeong-heon@sportschosun.com/2025.05.05/
It's hard to win one game until the day I take off my uniform, but it's the first time ever...That's why I'm a big pitcher
KBO League Kiwoom and KIA at Gocheok Dome on May 5. KIA won 13-1 against Kiwoom. KIA manager Lee Bum-ho, who is sharing high fives with Yang Hyeon-jong after the game. Gocheok =Reporter Song Jeong-heon@sportschosun.com/2025.05.05/
It's also the early point of giving up on personal goals. Yang Hyun-jong is challenging the 170 innings record for the 11th consecutive year this year. He has already achieved 170 innings for 10 consecutive years from 2014 to last year, holding the first record in KBO history, but he does not intend to stop here.

While preparing for this season, Yang Hyun-jong said, `I don't think my greed for innings will change until the day I take off my uniform to the fullest extent I can. I don't know what the season will be like, but I always want to throw a lot and my goal is to show you standing on the mound for a long time."

Yang Hyun-jong is scheduled to acquire his third FA qualification after the season. When he signed with Texas in 2021, he played as an FA and made his second FA contract with KIA as he returned to Korea ahead of the 2022 season. The total amount was 10.3 billion won for four years. Although the guarantee amount was 5.5 billion won, it added 4.8 billion won in options to match the total amount of 10 billion won.

Yang Hyun-jong will receive a C grade when he enters the third FA market. This year, his annual salary is 500 million won, and his compensation is 750 million won. Considering the age and durability, I can't guarantee that the transfer will be free, but it's a reward worth gambling on in desperate teams. In any case, Yang Hyun-jong must finish the season with a better report card than he is now in order to maintain the value of a great pitcher in the stove league.




Yang Hyun-jong can continue his goal of 170 innings using his first win of the season as a stepping stone and show why he is a great pitcher once again.

It's hard to win one game until the day I take off my uniform, but it's the first time ever...That's why I'm a big pitcher
KBO League Kiwoom and KIA at Gocheok Dome on May 5. KIA starter Yang Hyun-jong greets his fans as he comes down the mound after pitching in the sixth inning. Gocheok =Reporter Song Jeong-heon@sportschosun.com/2025.05.05/




This article was translated by Naver AI translator.