Yeong-hyun Park

Yeong-hyun Park (박영현)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 200 lb.

• High School Yushin High School

• Born October 11, 2003 in Gurye County South Korea

BR register page

Biographical Information

Yeong-hyun Park played in the KBO and for the South Korea national baseball team. His brother Jung-hyun Park and cousin Myung-hyun Park both played in the KBO.

Park was drafted by the KT Wiz in the first round of the 2022 KBO draft, and he had a 3.66 ERA in 52 games with 2 holds in his rookie year. He had a solid 2.75 ERA in 68 games in 2023, and he led the league with 32 holds. He was the youngest pitcher to notch 30 holds in KBO history, and he also attended the 2023 KBO All-Star Game. In the 2023 Korean Series, Park get a save with a shutout inning in Game 1, but he gave up a 2-run homer to Dong-won Park in Game 2 and got the loss. He then pitched a shutout inning in both Game 3 and Game 5, but the LG Twins beat the Wiz in 5 games.

The Gurye native also represented South Korea in the 2022 Asian Games (held in 2023 due to delays from COVID-19). He got a hold with a shutout inning against Hong Kong, and he relieved Ji-min Choi in the 6th inning against Chinese Taipei when runners were on second and third. Park struck out Chia-Cheng Lin to escape the jam, and he retired the next three batters he faced. He then pitched 2 shutout innings to notch a save against Japan, and he succeeded Choi in the 8th inning of the Gold Medal Game against Chinese Taipei. Park walked Hao-Yu Lee, then struck out Hao-Wei Shen and Min-Shih Chen. Tsung-Che Cheng then tried for a bunt hit, but catcher Hyung-jun Kim caught him and Korea won Gold. That exempted Park from South Korea's otherwise mandatory military service.

Park was named the new closer of KT in 2024, and he collected 25 saves with a 10-2 record and a 3.52 ERA in 66 appearances. He led the league in winning percentage, and he was 4th in saves (tied with Won-jung Kim). Park was the first reliever to get 10 wins since Seung-hwan Oh did it in 2005, and he was also the first reliever to lead the league in winning percentage since Oh.

Park's repertoire included a fastball (peak 95.1 mph), slider and changeup.

Sources

• Namu wiki bio
• 2022 Asian Games