Jung Hyun-woo pitched 122 pitches in his debut game, and he was calm. "I waited for the next inning. I wanted to stop it until the end."

Jung Hyun-woo pitched 122 pitches in his debut game, and he was calm. "I waited for the next inning. I wanted to stop it until the end."

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He could have exhausted himself by playing 122 games since his debut in the pro league, but he only had the determination to win. This is the story of Kiwoom Heroes' rookie pitcher Chung Hyeon-woo.먹튀검증

Jung Hyun-woo started the season's second game against the KIA Tigers of the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League held at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field on the 26th, and contributed to his team's 17-10 victory by allowing eight hits, seven strikeouts, and six runs (four earned runs) in five innings. He even garnered his first win in his debut game, recording the 12th start for a high school graduate rookie (as of the current year).

On the day, Chung pitched 122 pitches, which was the highest in fastballs (65 pitches). Sliders (37), curves (10), and folk balls (10) followed. The maximum speed of fastballs was 147 km/h. Chung's 122 pitches are the second highest in the history of high school graduates.

Chung had difficulties even in the early stages of the game. He gave up a double to Patrick Wisdom with one out in the bottom of the first inning, and allowed a wild pitch to reach the third base. He drew a ground ball to Na Sung-bum with one out and the third base runner Wisdom. On top of that, he allowed Lee Woo-sung to hit an RBI timely hit with two outs and runners on first and second bases after the follow-up hitter Choi Hyung-woo's double and Kim Sun-bin's walk.

Chung also struggled in the bottom of the second inning. When leadoff hitter Kim Tae-gun grounded out, third baseman Yeo Dong-wook made a throwing error. After Yoon Do-hyun's grounder to the third base and Choi Won-joon's grounder to the first base, Chung increased his outcount by two outs, giving up a timely two-run hit to Choi with the bases loaded with two outs. However, he took comfort in ending the inning when Kim Sun-bin grounded out to the third base with two outs and runners on the first and third bases.

Following the bottom of the third inning, Chung went on to score no runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. However, the number of pitches he pitched in the meantime was gradually increasing, and he threw 93 pitches until the bottom of the fourth inning. It would not be easy to play five innings.

However, Chung came up in the bottom of the fifth inning as well. He sent out leadoff hitter Byun Woo-hyuk with a hit, and Kim Tae-gun hit a double to Yoon Do-hyun after hitting a fly ball to right field. He struck out Choi Won-joon with runners on the second and third bases with one out, but after Wisdom's walk, he gave Na a timely double hit. Even with the number of pitches continuously increasing, the Kiwoom bench pushed ahead with Chung, and Choi Hyung-woo's fly ball to left field ended the inning with runners on the first and second bases with two outs. It was Chung Hyeon-woo's last inning on this day.

Criticism has been raised that the rookie pitcher threw the ball too much from his debut, but Chung Hyun-woo was calm. After the game, he met with reporters and said, "I was just waiting for the next inning, but I think I went up because you trusted me once more," and added, "The score difference was so big that I wanted to take responsibility for more than five innings. I wanted to stop it until the end."

When he was in high school, Chung had 105 pitches. "He didn't warm up his arms during the game, and he just threw when the game was going on. In high school, he warmed up his arms in the middle, so I think he was similar (to his high school days)."

There were assignments and achievements. "There were many unnecessary balls and there were too many pitches. I am very angry and sad that I allowed seven walks," Chung said. "I was nervous, and looking forward to catching (a batter), I think I got in a hurry. When I threw, I didn't feel that I lost strength, and I just threw every ball at full strength."

Jung Hyun-woo also vowed, "It's just the highest number of pitches I've ever thrown, and I'm comforted that I've stopped it until the end," adding, "Now that we've played our first game, and we have more games to go, I think we need to recover today's game and prepare for the next game."

Chung, who was born in 2006, graduated from Hongje Elementary School, Chungam Middle School, and Deoksu High School and joined Kiwoom as the top priority in the first round this year. He has already attracted attention even before his debut, as he was evaluated as a complete left-hander. Following the second (Taiwan) spring camp practice game, he checked his sense of play through exhibition game and posted two wins and an ERA of 0.82 in three games and 11 innings during the exhibition game.

Chung Hyun-woo, who won his first victory despite difficulties, tries to make up for what he felt sorry for. "The atmosphere seems to be very different from the trial game, and I think the seniors are definitely focusing more on the ball," he said. "I think I need to put in a strike more aggressively. I will reduce the number of pitches and be more active."