Ryu Hyun-jin (37)’s secret to survival in the Major League and his competitive edge was his ability to control the ball.
Ryu Hyun-jin made his name known based on his control over the strike zone and breaking balls such as changeups and curves.
This is the reason why Ryu Hyun-jin was able to achieve excellent results with 3 wins, 3 losses, 3.46 ERA in 52 innings (20 earned runs in 52 innings) 스포츠토토
38 strikeouts, and 14 walks in 11 games without any aftereffects from injury after returning 14 months after the elbow surgery he received for the second time this year.
It was thanks to control. The number of walks per 9 innings was 2.42, returning to its peak level.
He was the driving force behind the ability to suppress powerful hitters in the major leagues even with an average fastball velocity of less than 90 mph (approximately 145 km) (88.6 mph, 143 km).
And using this control as a weapon, Ryu Hyun-jin tries to gain recognition for his value again.
On the 24th (Korean time), MLB.com published an article titled ‘7 free agent players to watch despite injuries marring this season’ and mentioned Ryu Hyun-jin as one of the 7 players.
The media looked back on this year’s performance, saying
Ryu Hyun-jin can be considered a success simply by returning from his second Tommy John surgery this year
but in the final year of his four-year, $80 million contract
he recorded an ERA of 3.46 in 11 games and 52 innings this year.
He continued, ‘It showed that Ryu Hyun-jin’s trademark command has completely returned.
He mentioned Ryu Hyun-jin’s control, saying
The percentage of balls thrown at the border of the strike zone was 47.6%, tied for 4th in the major leagues (for pitchers with over 750 pitches).”
Based on this control, Ryu Hyun-jin emphasized that he can accept a good contract.
The media explained, ‘Given that Ryu Hyun-jin did not need to overwhelm with power to deploy efficient pitching
he has a good chance of remaining successful as he enters his age 37 season.’
On the 23rd, New York media outlet ‘NJ.com’ mentioned Ryu Hyun-jin as ‘an under-the-radar option that the Yankees could recruit.
The media reported, ‘Ryu Hyun-jin returned from Tommy John surgery last August and allowed two or fewer runs in eight of the 11 games as a starter.
The average four-seam velocity of 88.6 mph is slightly lower than the previous season.
He finished second in National League Cy Young Award voting in 2019 and third in American League Cy Young Award voting in 2020. He mentioned
Among active pitchers who have pitched more than 1,000 innings, the average ERA is 3.27, which ranks 8th overall.”
In addition, ‘Ryu Hyun-jin provides the team with a chance to win every time he starts.
Although he is older, he is a player who knows how to pitch. “You can buy a pitcher like this cheaply,
he explained, emphasizing that the Yankees should approach Ryu Hyun-jin.
This means that its value is recognized.
The current ransom price set for Ryu Hyun-jin is generally around $10 million (about 13 billion won).
John Heyman of the New York Post placed Ryu Hyun-jin 15th among 16 major free agent starting pitchers and predicted that he would sign a one-year contract worth $12 million (about 15.7 billion won).
‘The Athletic’ columnist Jim Borden predicted that he would sign a one-year contract worth $8 million (about 10.5 billion won).
Tim Britton, another writer for ‘The Athletic’, considering fWAR (FanGraphs Wins Above Replacement Contribution)
contract sizes of free agent players with similar performance over the past 10 years, and inflation rate, Ryu Hyun-jin’s price is $11 million (approx. It was also predicted to be 14.4 billion won.
To ensure minimum survival and opportunity in the major leagues, it is ideal to sign a contract worth more than $10 million.
Ryu Hyun-jin’s side is also hoping for this. Scott Boras, Ryu Hyun-jin’s agent, said
There will be no Ryu Hyun-jin returning to Korea.
He will play in the major leagues next year,” he said, also noting that he is in demand.
It is expected that Ryu Hyun-jin’s contract will be outlined to some extent only after A-level resources such as Shohei Otani
Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto sign contracts.
And for Ryu Hyun-jin, who is still competitive, a contract worth about $10 million does not seem to be that difficult.