The NC Dinosaurs set a new record in a match against Kia Tigers at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field on Sunday. Four pitchers recorded their first career hold in a game. The previous record was three pitchers. This means that all of the pitchers who played the role of must-winner are like "new faces." The record may be of little importance to NC, which pinpoints its hope on the growth of young bullpen pitchers.메이저사이트

NC put side-arm Kim Min-kyu (23) right after starting pitcher Riley Thompson was hit by a timely double by Kim Sun-bin with one out and second base in the bottom of the sixth inning with a 5-2 lead. Kim Min-kyu, who joined NC as a nurturing player last year, is one of the young bullpen pitchers that NC manager Lee Ho-joon is paying attention to this season. Kim Min-kyu, who took the mound in a crisis situation, struck out Lee Woo-sung, who hit a home run earlier, and even Han Jun-su, a ground ball to the second base, ending the inning without additional runs.

Kim Min-gyu, who took the mound in the seventh inning as well, treated pinch hitter Park Jae-hyun with a grounder to the pitcher, and allowed Park Chan-ho to hit a double that fell to the right side of the right field. Manager Lee put up Kim Tae-hyun (27), the only left-hander who is currently registered in the first division entry, in line with Choi Won-joon, the left-hander. Kim Tae-hyun, who is responsible for the absence of major left-hander bullpens such as Kim Young-gyu and Lim Jung-ho due to injuries and sluggishness, played his part by catching Choi Won-joon with a grounder to the second base.

In Na Sung-bum's at-bat, with two outs and runners on the third base, Son Joo-hwan (23) took the mound. Last year, Sohn had a 9.82 ERA in four games during the 2024 season. "He couldn't even go to camp, and he recommended it to me as a member of the C team (second division). I didn't expect much, but he threw his ball vigorously on the mound." Son accomplished his mission by handling Na Sung-bum with a fly ball to the third baseman.

The next pitcher was Jeon Sa-min, 26, who Lee vowed to use as a must-winner for this season. Lee once again trusted Jeon Sa-min, who collapsed by allowing four runs in 0.1 innings in the eighth inning when he took the mound with a 2-1 lead against KIA on the previous day. Jeon struck out Patrick Wisdom and Choi Hyung-woo in a row, caught Kim Sun-bin with a fly ball to the right field, and neatly stopped the first inning.

In the ninth inning, when the two-run lead continued, NC's new closer Ryu Jin-wook took the mound. Lee said, "Although I lost my speed a little, Ryu Jin-wook is the only pitcher who can pressure my opponent with a fastball." Ryu Jin-wook was hit with a chase solo shot by Han Jun-su with one out, but he filled two remaining out-counts against Kim Kyu-sung and Park Chan-ho. Ryu Jin-wook added his first save in 1,304 days since the match against Doosan in Changwon on Aug. 27, 2021.

Before the opening of the 2025 season, most experts rated NC as a "outside-the-five" team. The reliever's thin depth was another reason for predicting NC to be at the bottom. In fact, NC lost against KIA in the opening game when its bullpen collapsed. At the same time, it was the bullpen that is considered weak that enabled NC to keep its first win of the season by 5-4 and 1-point difference.

"Just as Samsung's young batters (Kim Young-woong and others) erased question marks last year and performed well, we hope that there will be as many as three players on the pitcher's side as one or two," manager Lee said. "If young pitchers pitch well, it can be said that our middle is strong on the other hand."

"Kim Young-gyu is injured, and Kim Si-hoon is in the second division. New players are playing must-win roles," captain Park Min-woo said. "If I don't get swayed too much mentally, I think I will block him well because he has good pitching. I hope he can cheer up in the next game as well."