SSG Landers submarine pitcher Jong-hoon Park finally got the win. He won the battle with himself. Changing his mindset changed the outcome.
SSG won the 10th game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against the Hanwha Eagles 6-3 at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on April 29. Park Jong-hoon, who took the mound for the first time in 24 days after his last start against the KIA Tigers (a five-run loss in 2⅔ innings), pitched six innings of three-hit, seven-strikeout ball to earn the win.
He retired all three batters he faced in the first inning. That’s how his game started. He didn’t allow a single hit until the third inning. He didn’t walk a batter until the sixth inning. In all, Jong-hoon pitched seven innings, allowing one run on five hits and zero walks while striking out seven.
Jong-hoon pitched a no-hitter on the day. The last time he pitched a no-hitter was on September 22, 2022, against Munhwa Hanwha, 310 days later. It was his best pitching performance since his elbow surgery and rehabilitation.
The time spent in the second team was not in vain. “I worked out thinking, ‘I’m in camp,'” Park said. I kept watching videos, and if I felt like it, I would go out and work out, even if it was late. I thought, ‘All I can do now is practice,'” he says.
The solution to his slump was practice. Coach Kim Won-hyung said, “I’m grateful for the six innings of no-hit ball, but I’m also impressed with the way he pitched. I think it was the result of perseverance and good preparation in the second team. Jong-hoon pitched well, and we were able to win the game.”
Jong-hoon also decided to pay less attention to his release point in order to enjoy the victory. It was analyzed that his release point was higher than when he was at his best, which led to his slump. He couldn’t help but be concerned.
Park Jong-hoon releases the ball from the lowest point in the league. However, his release point has increased. Coach Kim Won-hyung didn’t point to release points as the reason for Jong-hoon’s recent struggles. However, Jong-hoon had been paying a lot of attention to this aspect of his game, so he worried about it more, and his pitches weren’t working as he wanted.
Eventually, he shook it off. “I’ve been paying a lot of attention to my arm height,” Jong-hoon said. As a result, I was overwhelmed with thoughts of ‘it’s not right’ during practice and games, and I think I regretted that.” He reflected. “When I’m on the mound, I’m thinking too much, and I can’t really fight with the batters. There’s nothing good about overthinking. In fact, when things don’t work out, it’s better to keep things simple.
For Jong-hoon, accepting and acknowledging his problems and the changes from the good days made a difference in his results. “I think it was helpful to acknowledge and accept that my release point has increased,” he said.
Jong-hoon used to release the ball so low that the back of his hand would scratch the mound and bleed, but after surgery and rehabilitation, his release point has increased. “It was almost 20 centimeters higher,” Jong-hoon said. “I thought, ‘This is not right. My self-doubt grew.”
“I kept fighting with myself, and then I stopped thinking about the ‘release point’ issue. I just tried to think about the batter and the game. It took some time, but when I was in the second team, I thought, ‘It’s camp,’ and worked out.스포츠토토
“It’s not just a fluke today, but I have to show this kind of performance in the next game, and the next game, and the next game. Even if I don’t pitch a no-hitter like I did today, I’ll show that I’m more confident throwing the ball and facing hitters. I’m going to show that it’s not luck, it’s skill.” The resurrected ‘eagle killer’. It will be interesting to see if he can translate his lessons to other teams.