It took a really long time. I will prepare harder to show good results more often and show you great performances."

NC Dinos pitcher Bae Jae-hwan took the mound as relief pitcher in his third showdown of the regular season against the LG Twins of the "2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League" held at Jamsil Stadium on Tuesday. He pitched one inning without a hit, no four outs, and kept his 6-5 win in the 10th inning.안전놀이터

Bae took the mound in the bottom of the 10th inning when the NC Dinosaurs took a 6-5 lead. He effectively blocked the opponent team's center lineup three to five times to secure saves. The first batter was Austin Dean, who hit a homerun on the day. Bae threw a fastball 149 kilometers per hour from the first pitch, and threw sliders and forkball breaking balls to induce a fly ball to the left field. 

In the match with the follow-up hitter Moon Bo-kyung, he threw a heavy fastball 149km at the first pitch and pulled his bat out with a fork ball and turned it into a ground ball to the second base. In the end, Kim Hyun-soo faced a 2-0 unfavorable situation, but he overwhelmed the opponent only with a fastball and filled the last out count of the inning with a fly ball to the left field.

With the save, Bae Jae-hwan recorded his second save in 2518 days since the match against the Hanwha Eagles in Daejeon on May 31, 2018.

Bae Jae-hwan, who met after the game, said, "The team lost consecutive games, but I'm really happy that it finished well at the end. I was very nervous because it was my first save in seven years, but I'm very satisfied with the result. I went out and threw my ball confidently because I prepared well in the Futures League," he said.

Bae Jae-hwan joined the first team entry for the first time this season. Currently, he has three strikeouts with one save and three ⅓ in three games. He has a small sample, but he left a strong impression with powerful pitches that overwhelm his opponent. 

"I was really happy when I got the call-up because I thought I would prepare my ball well in the Futures League," Bae said with a smile. "I think I got better results after throwing the ball with confidence. I was just holding my phone to see if I would get a call-up call while watching baseball every day," Bae said. "My physical condition is best. I am fit enough to join any position because I am not sick. I am about 99 percent, but I am still going up."

In the 2019 season, he recorded a career high with a 3.81 61 strikeout with a 3-5 record and 20 holds and 54 ⅓ innings in 62 games. In 2020, the following year, he helped NC win its first integrated championship with a 3.98 33 strikeout in 43 innings with 1 win, 3 losses and 12 holds in 53 games.

However, the performance did not continue. Since the 2023 season when he was discharged from the military service at Sangmu, his performance has been sluggish due to surgery to remove bone fragments in his right elbow and knee injury. He continued his ups and downs as if he lost his ball power during his heyday.

"I gave him the nickname Bae Dong-yeol (Bae Jae-hwan + Seon Dong-yeol)," Lee said, referring to Bae who has been diligently striving during the off-season. Still, he thinks of himself as a pitcher who will have to finish the game at NC Dinos someday. He loves and dislikes the pitcher. He just met again. He had a good rest last year because he was sick. Pitchers slumped once before returning to the mound again. "I think it is time for next year to come up," Lee said. He recently returned to the first team to prove his value.

"I didn't set a goal all the time. I just want to play full time without getting sick," Bae said. "It took me a long time. I will prepare harder to show good performances more often and show you great matches."