First No Shutout Season in 42 Years
[Cheon Byeong-hyuk’s Baseball World] First ‘no shutout’ season in 42 years… Sun Dong-yeol and Yoon Hak-gil remain legends
Complete pitches and shutouts are the symbolic records of an ace pitcher.
However, in modern baseball, with the division of labor on the mound clearly established and the number of pitches limited, the number of cases where a starting pitcher takes charge of a game is decreasing.
The ‘riding pitcher’ phenomenon, which has been rampant in the KBO League over the past few years, also played a role.
Even so, this season's professional baseball is disappointing as there has not been a single shutout game with only five games left until the end of the regular season. 카지노사이트킹
Since the launch of professional baseball in 1982, there has not been a single year in which a shutout was not recorded.
On the 11th, KIA Tigers' veteran pitcher Yang Hyun-jong pitched 8 scoreless innings in a game against Kiwoom Heroes.
With a large lead of 11-0, Yang Hyun-jong had 97 pitches, so he was able to challenge for a shutout, but due to team circumstances, he went down the mound to prepare for the next game.
On September 23, KT Wiz's foreign pitcher William Cuevas went on a no-hitter until 1 out in the 9th inning against KIA, and was replaced after allowing a walk after being hit by a triple by Kim Do-young.
Eric Peddy (NC Dinos) also allowed one run with one out in the 9th inning against the Lotte Giants on September 10, but there were not many pitchers in professional baseball this season who even came close to a shutout.
What about American and Japanese professional baseball?
Although anyone can hit a home run in the major league, this season 19 pitchers recorded 21 shutouts, including twice by Gerrit Cole (New York Yankees) and Framber Valdez (Houston Astros).
Japan surprisingly has more.
In the Central League alone, 17 pitchers achieved shutouts 24 times, and in the Pacific League, 13 pitchers achieved shutouts 17 times.
In both leagues combined, 30 pitchers recorded 41 shutouts.
It seems understandable why Japanese pitchers overwhelmed heavy hitters from Central and South America, including the United States, at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) held last March.
There used to be a time in the KBO league when shutout pitchers led the league.
In 1993, 28 pitchers took charge of the game, recording a whopping 57 shutouts.
From 1986 to 1995, there were more than 40 shutouts each year.
Afterwards, it began to decrease little by little, and last year, there were only three people: Ko Young-pyo (KT), David Buchanan (Samsung), and Tyler Appler (Kiwoom).
The most shutouts in KBO League history is literally 'legend' Sun Dong-yeol's 29 shutouts.
Sun Dong-yeol played in the KBO League for 11 seasons, but he started as a starter from the second half of 1985 until April 1992, when he left due to shoulder tenosynovitis.
The fact that he has 29 shutouts in less than seven full seasons is truly incredible.
Sun Dong-yeol also served as closer during this period and added 56 saves.
Following Seon Dong-yeol, the second most shutouts are Hak-gil Yoon and Min-cheol Jeong with 20 shutouts, while pitchers who were active in the 1980s and 1990s, such as Gye-hyeon Jo (19 shutouts) and Kang-cheol Lee (18 shutouts), are ranked high.
Among active pitchers, Jang Won-jun (Doosan) is tied for 51st place with 5 complete shutouts, Ko Young-pyo and Yang Hyun-jong are tied for 61st place with 4 shutouts, and Kim Gwang-hyun (SSG) is tied for 79th place with 3 shutouts.
This year, there were only 5 complete games.
Fortunately, Buchanan won a complete game against KIA on July 13th, allowing 1 run in 9 innings, and Mario Sanchez (KIA) recorded a complete game loss, allowing 3 runs in 8 innings against KT on the 4th.
Oh Won-seok (SSG), Jeong Chan-heon (Kiwoom), and Shim Jae-min (Lotte) pitched less than 7 innings and recorded a complete game win in a rain-cold game due to rain.
In a situation where even complete games are becoming rare, the 100 complete games held by ‘Lonely Crown Prince’ Yoon Hak-gil is considered an immortal record.
‘Iron Arm’ Choi Dong-won is in second place with 81 complete pitches, and ‘Opening Game Man’ Jang Ho-yeon is in third place with 79 complete pitches.
Among active pitchers, Yang Hyeon-jong and Jang Won-jun tied for 77th place with 13 complete pitches, which is the highest record.
The biggest reason why Korean professional baseball has performed poorly in recent international competitions is the decline in pitching ability.
Although Moon Dong-ju (Hanwha Eagles) emerged as a new ace through the Hangzhou Asian Games, the team will be able to build competitiveness once again only if a number of young guns with shutout and complete game abilities, such as Sun Dong-yeol and Yoon Hak-gil, are produced.
