Hanwha’s Noh Si-hwan’s rise is scary.
As of November 11, Noh is batting .305 (96-for-305) with 19 home runs, 57 RBIs, and 50 runs scored in 77 games.
After hitting just six home runs last year, the first half isn’t even over yet, and he’s already set a new single-season home run record. He surpassed his 18 home runs in 2021 and is tied for first place with SSG’s Choi Jung. It’s looking increasingly likely that he will not only reach 20 home runs for the first time in his career, but also become the first Hanwha player to do so in 15 years since Kim Tae-gyun in 2008.
Choi Won-ho attributed the increase in home runs to a change in his hitting point. “Last year, he left his hitting point behind in order to reduce his strikeout rate and increase his batting average and on-base percentage, but as he became better at handling changeups, his on-base percentage increased, but his long balls, which are his strength, decreased. This year, he’s ditched that and put his hitting point in front. I think that’s the biggest change.”
Choi continued, “In batting practice, I noticed that he was hitting more in front of his hitting point. The change in hitting point is the biggest secret to making good shots. If you go too far forward, you’re going to take a bad swing. A lot of times, if you leave your hitting point in front, you can’t hit your changeup, but Noh is hitting his fastball and then his changeup, so he’s hitting at a career high.”
Noh Si-hwan hit back-to-back home runs for Samsung Electronics in Daegu on April 1. Leading off the fourth inning with a 0-1 deficit, Noh launched a solo shot to left field off Samsung starter David Buchanan. It traveled 110 meters. On a 1B-1S pitch count, Noh pulled a three-pitch fastball (148 kilometers) hard and drove it into the left-field stands.카지노
With runners on first and second with one out in the fifth inning, he blasted a three-run homer to right off Buchanan. He drove a two-pitch curveball into the arch for his 17th of the season. Manager Choi Won-ho praised Noh’s back-to-back home runs, saying, “He hits fastballs and changeups in the strike zone. It was completely over the top.”
SPOTV commentator Yang Sang-moon, who developed Lee Dae-ho into one of the best hitters in Korea when he was manager of Lotte, said, “Lee Dae-ho is better in terms of accuracy and flexibility, but Noh Si-hwan is better in terms of power. That’s for sure. His technique for producing long balls has definitely improved. As a result, his home runs have increased. Last year, I would have struck out, but this year I’m getting my timing right.”
“I think if I keep doing what I’m doing, I’ll get good results,” he said of his home run production this year. “I want to hit 30 home runs in the first half of the season, but I’m not going to be greedy, I’m going to focus more at the plate and prepare well to help the team win,” he said.