SSG Landers’ Kim Kwang-hyun (36) shares his thoughts on the pitch clock and automatic ball judgment system (ABS), which will be introduced for the first time this year.

Kim departed for the spring training camp in Vero Beach, Florida, USA, via Incheon International Airport on May 25. “It is said that last year was my third disaster, born in 1988. I wanted the year to go by really fast,” he said, adding that after a difficult year, he prepared for the new season by working out with juniors in Okinawa, Japan. “It’s usually rainy in Okinawa, but this year, it only rained once when I went and once when I came, and only on my days off, so I worked out well. I think my body is in good shape,” he said, expressing confidence in his preparation for the season.

With a career record of 158-88 with a 3.20 ERA in 356 games (2015⅓ innings) in the KBO, Han is a veteran starting pitcher who also played in the Major Leagues in 2020 and 2021. However, 안전놀이터 this year, the KBO is introducing new rules that he hasn’t experienced before.

“The KBO held the first executive committee meeting in 2024 and finalized the detailed operating regulations for the Automatic Pitching Judgment System (ABS) and Pitch Clock (pilot),” the league announced on April 24. ABS, which has been piloted in the Futures League for the past four years, will be introduced in the First Division. The KBO is the first league in the world to introduce ABS to its first team.

Pitch clocks, which were introduced in Major League Baseball last year, will also be implemented.

“The time limit between pitches will be 18 seconds when there are no runners on base and 23 seconds when there are (MLB standards are 15 and 20 seconds). A pitch must be thrown within 30 seconds between batters, the catcher must be in the catcher’s box by the time 9 seconds remain on the pitch clock, and the batter must be ready to bat by the time 8 seconds remain on the pitch clock. Violations will result in a ball for the defense and a strike for the offense.”

“I haven’t played the game yet, so I don’t know. However, it seems like there are more and more rules that are unfavorable to pitchers,” he said. “The first reason for pitch clock is to shorten the time. I don’t think it makes sense to have a rule that disadvantages the pitcher,” he added.

“I don’t know exactly how it will work,” said Kim Kwang-hyun. “In the original 12-second rule, there was a situation where only the pitcher was judged as a ball, but with pitch clock, batters can also be called strikes, so I think it’s important that batters can also be penalized. “I think it’s going to make it harder for pitchers because there’s less control, which is ironic because longer innings means longer games,” he said.

“I didn’t have a chance to talk to the commissioner,” laughed Kim Kwang-hyun,

“I wanted to speak on behalf of the pitchers, but I don’t know, because the fans like to see a lot of blowouts and they like high-scoring baseball. It’s hard to say whether the new rules are good or bad right now. Anyway, I think it’s necessary to adapt quickly, and if I know how it feels quickly, I think it’s one way to tell my juniors quickly,” he said, emphasizing the importance of adapting to the new rules quickly.

KBO Commissioner Heo Koo-yeon has been working hard to introduce new regulations such as pitch clock and ABS to the KBO. In November of last year, he said of the world’s first ABS, “Fans need to understand why we are introducing ABS. There is a lot of frustration from players, clubs, umpires, and fans. The pressure is so great that some referees are saying they can’t do it. We’re not 100% ready yet, 파워볼게임 but we’re doing our best to prepare. Of course, we’ll do everything we can to make sure there are no problems, but there will be some noise at the beginning. We hope the fans will understand and pull together as a team,” he said.

It will be interesting to see if the new system, which has both expectations and concerns, will be able to settle well in the KBO.