Reporter Oh Sang-jin = Age is just a number.

SSG veteran pitchers Noh Kyung-eun (39) and Koh Hyo-jun (40) literally succeeded in rejuvenating themselves last year. Noh Kyung-eun appeared in 41 games, going back and forth between the starter and the bullpen, recording 12 wins and 7 holds with an ERA of 3.05. Koh Hyo-jun played in 45 games, with an average ERA of 3.72 with 1 win and 7 holds, which was a great help to SSG, who lacked a left-handed bullpen. The two players were recognized for their contribution to the championship, respectively, with Roh Kyung-eun receiving 70% (100 million → 170 million won, 70 million won ↑) and Ko Hyo-joon 112.5% ​​(40 million → 85 million won, 45 million won ↑), respectively. contracted to

Even when the 2021 season was over, Noh Kyung-eun and Ko Hyo-jun were in danger of retirement side by side. Noh Kyung-eun, who was notified of the non-renewal of the contract from Lotte, took a test at SSG’s finishing camp and successfully signed the contract by showing off his strength with a fastball with a maximum speed of 147km/h. In the case of Koh Hyo-jun, it was more dramatic. Koh Hyo-jun, who was released from Lotte after the end of the 2020 season, dramatically joined LG ahead of the opening of the 2021 season, but was released again after one season. However, he did not give up and steadily built up his body to prepare, and eventually passed SSG’s entrance test in January 2022. 카지노사이트

The secret to the long run of the two players, who have already been professional for more than 20 years, is that they maintain a competitive velocity through steady physical maintenance. Last year, the average velocity of Noh Kyung-eun’s fastball was 144.6 km/h and Ko Hyo-joon’s was 145 km/h. Regardless of their age, both players threw the ball faster than the KBO league average (144.2 km/h). Compared to Lotte days (139.7 km/h) in the 2021 season, Roh Kyung-eun’s speed was about 5 km/h faster, and faster than in 2014 (143.6 km/h), when he was 30 years old. Koh Hyo-jun also showed off his left-handed fireballer’s appearance to the extent that he had the fastest fastball restraint among the last 9 seasons and ranked 9th among left-handed pitchers in the league (based on 30 or more innings).

The two veteran pitchers, who have reached their second peak by adding experience to thorough self-management, are expected to occupy a large part of the SSG pitching staff this season. Noh Kyung-eun, who is eagerly preparing for the new season by postponing gallbladder removal surgery, is like an almighty key who can take charge of both the starter and bullpen in a situation where all foreign pitchers have changed and Lee Tae-yang is out of free agency. Koh Hyo-joon has to share the burden of the left-handed pitcher’s bullpen vacancy created by Kim Taek-hyung’s military enlistment with his juniors. Attention is focusing on whether the two players who have overcome the retirement crisis and succeeded in reviving will once again prove that age is just a number this season.