Is this the end → Late game ‘mad dash’ → 400SV Greatest Hits…’The King’ does not fall

The word “end” has been thrown around quite a bit in the first half of the season, but the second half has been a mad dash. The 30th save of the season, and the first in KBO history to reach 400 saves. The ‘King’ did not fall. Samsung’s ‘closer’ Oh Seung-hwan (41) flew again.

Oh Seung-hwan pitched 1.1 innings of two-hit ball to earn the save in the SSG game of the 2023 KBO League regular season at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on Thursday.

Samsung earned a 5-3 victory on the day. From 1-3, they scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to make it 4-3. Oh Seung-hwan came in to save the day with two outs in the top of the eighth, and Lee Sung-kyu’s RBI triple in the bottom of the eighth made it 5-3 before Oh closed out the game in the top of the ninth.

With the win, Oh reached the 30-save plateau for the season. He finished the season with a record of 58-52.2 innings pitched in 58 games, a 4-5 record, two shutouts, 30 saves, and a 3.45 ERA. This is his third consecutive year of 30 saves.

At the same time, he reached 400 career saves in the KBO. No one else has done it. Except for Oh Seung-hwan, no one else has 300 saves. This is despite being away for six years playing overseas. He’s not synonymous with saves for nothing.

When he finished the 2022 season, Oh had 370 career saves. “I get a lot of questions. If I make 30 more, I’ll have 400 saves. I don’t care about the record, but I want to reach 400 saves as soon as possible,” he laughed.

It wasn’t easy. The first half of the season was strangely disorganized. I didn’t really find my groove at the beginning of the season, and I was dropped from the closer’s spot. On May 3, he made his first start, a long one to help him find his groove. He pitched well, going five innings and giving up three runs.

After a short break, he came back to close out the season, but he lacked a bit of consistency. His overall record is 26 games, 30 innings pitched, 2 wins, 3 losses, 2 holds, 10 saves, and a 4.80 ERA. He had three blown saves.

Through the first half, he had 380 saves. Filling in the remaining 20 in the second half seemed like a tall order, but Seung-hwan Oh was Seung-hwan Oh. In the second half, he started 32 games and pitched 32.2 innings, going 2-2 with 20 saves and a 2.20 ERA. A completely different player.

Little by little, he chipped away at the “400” until he reached the milestone with a 1.1-inning save in his 143rd game of the season and the team’s final home game. He was congratulated by his teammates, and a video was shown on the big screen. There was also a spectacular fireworks display.

“I thought, ‘What if it’s blond?'” he said in a broadcast interview after the record. Seung-hwan Oh was also nervous. In fact, he gave up two walks in the top of the ninth inning, but he held his own until the end. He secured the win for his team. Both the team and Oh Seung-hwan smiled. 먹튀검증

It’s true that there were many critics when he was struggling in the first half. ‘Even if you’re Seung-hwan Oh, you can’t help your age,’ was the dominant assessment. There were many games where his fastball was only in the low 140 kilometers per hour. There were times when it was in the 130 kilometers per hour range.

I wobbled, but that was it. I found my pace. He started hitting over 145 mph on average. He has a full arsenal of pitches, including a slider, curve, changeup, and splitter. His command is unparalleled.

With his stuff coming back and his command improving, there was no reason for him not to pitch. She confidently reached 30 saves for the season and the long-awaited 400 saves. They say he’s the ultimate king. Seung-hwan Oh is still the king, and he’s the best closer in the league.