“He pitches exactly where the catcher wants it.”
He is the KBO’s No. 2 homegrown pitcher after Ahn Woo-jin (Kiwoom). Right-hander Na Kyun-an (25) has surpassed Lotte to become the KBO’s leading pitcher. He pitched well against the KIA in Busan on 3 March, allowing three runs on six hits with three strikeouts and two walks in six innings. In 11 games this season, he is 5-1 with a 2.55 ERA.
He ranks 5th in ERA (2nd in Korea), 5th in wins (1st in Korea), 5th in innings pitched (67, 2nd in Korea), 5th in WHIP (1.06, 2nd in Korea), and 6th in batting average (0.224, 2nd in Korea). In each of these categories, Ahn ranks second in Korea. She is even fifth in the league and second in the country with 25.5 Cy Young points according to baseball statistics site Statiz. Ahn is first in the country with 31.4 points.
Na Gyun-ahn is a former catcher and is only in his third year as a pitcher. Considering that he has risen to the top of the league in just three years, his growth rate is incredible. He has a fastball that sits in the mid-140s, a forkball, a slider, and a curveball. He has the highest percentage of four-seam and forkballs, and a very good slider and curveball.
토토사이트 There are two characteristics of a forkballer who represents the KBO beyond Lotte. SBS Sports commentator Lee Soon-cheol, who broadcast the Busan KIA game on the 3rd, highlighted this aspect several times and praised Na Kyun-ahn.
He said, “Na Gyun-ahn has a short pitching career, but he pitches exactly where he wants to and is very intimidating. He pitches exactly where the catcher Yoo Kang-nam opens his mitt. He’s really sharp. He has a good fastball, so he can get a good count. You have to take advantage of it.”
It’s not just that he’s good at throwing forkballs, it’s that he puts all of his pitches exactly where the catcher wants them, so he doesn’t lose control of the game. I wonder if he knew that he had this advantage since he was a catcher and not just a strong shoulder. Na Gyun-ahn’s transition to pitching is a complete success.
Another is runner control. Commentator Lee Soon-cheol said, “Because he was a catcher, his catching motion is quite fast. It is inevitable that the runner’s lead will be narrower than a pitcher with a slower action.” In fact, earlier in the game, KIA’s Park Chan-ho failed to steal second base after reaching first base. Park is third in the league with 11 stolen bases this season and boasts an 84.6 per cent success rate.
This also helps to limit runs. “Normally, when a runner steals a base, they use their right leg and left leg in a 7-3 ratio,” says Lee. However, Na Gyun-ahn is fast, so the runner has no choice but to use five to five. If there is even a slight reverse motion, it’s time for the out.”
On the contrary, Lee sees the complementary point of Na Gyun-ahn is the forkball. First of all, Lee said that Na’s forkball is “a little bit of index finger on the seam end of the ball, twisting and slowing it down to induce a false swing.” The forkball itself is quite powerful. It’s almost indistinguishable from a fastball to home plate.
However, he suggested that it would be better if the forkball was dropped towards the body rather than away from the batter, especially for left-handed hitters. This makes sense. The batsman is forced to react faster to the body than to the outside. The faster the bat comes off the plate, the more surely the forked ball will be swung away, giving the pitcher an advantage.
“You have to get him to throw to the body when the left-hander comes in,” says Lee. The batter will try to react quickly to the body. If the pitch is close to their eyes, they will react faster and swing away quickly. This increases the chance of a hit. He has a good fastball, so it’s possible.”
Looking at his form over the past two months, Lee believes he has exceeded expectations. “I’ve been a starter for 11 games, and my velocity hasn’t dropped. I’m consistently hitting the mid 140s. His command is good and his game management is good even though he hasn’t pitched for a long time. It depends on whether his velocity drops or not, but I’m looking forward to the future.”