KIA’s Yang Hyun-jong (35) has moved into sole possession of second place in career wins. In addition to the wins, he is also in second place in the cumulative records for pitchers in the KBO. It remains to be seen if he can overtake leader Song Jin-woo (Scoreboard Hyenas). Kim Jong-kook, who has watched Yang Hyun-jong from player to coach to manager at KIA, believes he can.
On the 27th, Yang pitched 6⅔ innings of seven-hit ball with two walks and three strikeouts against the Gwangju LG. It was his third win of the season and 162nd of his career. With the win, he moved from a tie for second place on the KBO’s all-time wins list to sole possession of second place.메이저놀이터
▷Yang Hyun-jong’s major accumulated records including games played on the 27th
- 162 wins 2nd place (1st place Song Jin-woo 210 wins)
- 2212⅓ innings pitched 3rd (1st Song Jin-woo 3003 innings, 2nd Jung Min-cheol 2394⅔ innings)
- 2nd in strikeouts with 1861 (1st Song Jin-woo with 2048)
Before the game on the 27th, Kim Jong-kook was asked about Yang Hyun-jong’s chances of becoming the all-time wins leader. After thinking about it for a while, Kim Jong-kook said, “He’s about 50 wins away from Song Jin-woo. It seems possible, but it also seems far away,” he said.
However, he also said, “I need five more years to catch up, but I don’t think it’s impossible if I play like this. If we keep rotating like we are now, it might be possible. The most important thing is thorough management. Since I take care of my body so well, I think it’s possible without any special injuries.”
Yang has consistently pitched more than 170 innings since his first season in 2014. In 2016, he threw a whopping 200⅓ innings. That’s enough to make him one of the top innings-eaters in the KBO. He takes pride and responsibility in his innings pitched.
Throwing so many innings consistently means that he is strong. Coach Kim Jong-kook hopes that Yang will maintain his strengths in the future.
Meanwhile, when Yang Hyun-jong joined KIA, Kim Jong-kook was in his final season as a pitcher. Thinking back to 2007, 16 years ago, Kim Jong-kook said, “When (Yang) was younger, he didn’t know how to play. He trained a lot. He trained a lot when he was coached by Lee Kang-cheol and when he was coached by Toshio Kanbe. Even though it was so hard, he persevered and made it his own, which is great. He had his ups and downs at the beginning of his debut, but he was able to endure the hardships, and that’s why he is the player he is today,” said Yang Hyun-jong.