Han Hyun-hee (; born June 25, 1993) is a South Korean

relief pitcher In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic ...

who plays for the

Kiwoom Heroes The Kiwoom Heroes () are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Seoul. They are a member of the KBO League. The Heroes play their home games at Gocheok Sky Dome in Gocheok-dong, a neighborhood located in the southwestern part of Seou ...

of the

KBO League The KBO League (), officially the Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League, is the highest level league of baseball in South Korea. The KBO League was founded with six franchises in 1982 and is the most popular sports league in South Korea. The Kia Tigers ar ...

. He bats and throws right-handed.

Amateur career

Han was born in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

. He attended Kyungnam High School in

Busan Busan (), officially known as is South Korea's most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.4 million inhabitants. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economic, cultural and educational center of southeastern South Korea, w ...

. In May 2010 Han led his team to the national championship at the 65th Blue Dragon Flag National Championship, allowing only one earned run in 10 innings pitched as the team's closer. Han threw a

no-hitter In baseball, a no-hitter is a game in which a team was not able to record a hit. Major League Baseball (MLB) officially defines a no-hitter as a completed game in which a team that batted in at least nine innings recorded no hits. A pitcher wh ...

on June 9, 2011, allowing two

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an 'inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ov ...

s and striking out 17 batters with 104 pitches against Gaesung High School in the

Gyeongsang Gyeongsang ( ko, 경상도, ''Gyeongsang-do''; ) was one of the eight provinces of Korea during the Joseon dynasty. Gyeongsang was located in the southeast of Korea. The provincial capital was Daegu. The region was the birthplace of the Kingdom ...

regional preliminary league for the 65th Golden Lion Flag National Championship where he racked up three consecutive

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

wins with 39 strikeouts in 27 innings pitched. In August 2011 Han was selected as a member of the South Korean U-18 national team for the

Asian Junior Baseball Championship The U-18 Asian Baseball Championship is an under-18 international baseball tournament sanctioned and created by the Baseball Federation of Asia (BFA). The tournament is prior to the 18U Baseball World Cup which is held every other year. Results ...

held in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

, Japan. Han was summoned to close the semifinal game against

Chinese Taipei "Chinese Taipei" is the term used in various international organizations and tournaments for groups or delegations representing the Republic of China (ROC), a country commonly known as Taiwan. Due to the One-China principle stipulated by th ...

in the eighth inning. He earned a win, hurling three innings and allowing one unearned run in South Korea's 4–3 victory to Chinese Taipei. On September 23, 2018, he became the first holder to win 10 games against SK.

Notable international appearances

Professional career

Han made himself eligible for the 2012 KBO Draft and was selected as the second overall pick in the draft by the

Nexen Heroes The Kiwoom Heroes () are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Seoul. They are a member of the KBO League. The Heroes play their home games at Gocheok Sky Dome in Gocheok-dong, a neighborhood located in the southwestern part of Se ...

Pitching styles

As a sidearm pitcher Han combines a fastball that averages early 90 mph with a

curveball In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curve ...

and a

circle changeup In baseball, a circle changeup (also called the "okay changeup", related to the thumb and index finger touching) is a pitch (baseball), pitch thrown with a grip that includes a circle formation, hence the name circle changeup. The circle is fo ...

References

External links

Profile and stats
on the KBO official website South Korean baseball players Kiwoom Heroes players KBO League pitchers 1993 births Living people Kyungnam High School alumni Asian Games medalists in baseball Baseball players at the 2014 Asian Games Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for South Korea Baseball players from Seoul {{SouthKorea-baseball-pitcher-stub