This is a great achievement four years after his major league debut.
Korean major leaguer Daein Dunning (29, Texas Rangers) earned his first postseason win in relief four years after his major league debut. Dunning won in relief with 2 hits (1 home run), 1 strikeout, 1 walk, and 1 run in 2 innings in Game 1 of the American League Division Series against the 2023 Major League Baltimore Orioles held at Camden Yards at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, Maryland, USA on the 8th (Korean time). won.
Dunning is having the best season of his career in his fourth year in the major leagues. He had 12 wins, 7 losses, 3 holds, and a 3.70 earned run average in 35 regular season games. It was his first career double-digit wins and an earned run average in the 3-run range in regulation innings. In fact, he played an excellent role as the 2nd or 3rd starter succeeding ace Nathan Ibaldi.
Dunning was a consistent starter in 2021 and 2022, but had to undergo surgery at the end of last season due to hip problems. The story of joining the Korean WBC national team is famous. He was in the hospital just a year ago, but a year later he became an indispensable presence on the Texas mound.
Texas significantly strengthened its starting lineup ahead of this season, including signing Jacob deGrom on a five-year contract worth $185 million (about 249.6 billion won). In the end, Dunning started with long relief. However, deGrom had a bad wrist from the beginning of the season, and later his arm started to feel abnormal, and he ended up having to undergo Tommy John surgery and end the season.
Dunning filled that void brilliantly. His velocity is not very fast, and he is not a style that is good at pitching. He is the type of pitcher who throws a lot of strikes and needs help from defenders while competing on a course-by-course basis. However, Dunning did not avoid it and did not walk excessively. He had a lot of games where he got hit and gave up runs, but he had more games where he pitched well.스포츠토토
He was no different in the post season. Dunning did not get a chance in the wild card race against the Tampa Bay Rays. He had no chance to start anyway in the best-of-three series. And he returned to long relief in the Division Series. Starting pitcher Andrew Heaney was suddenly brought in after allowing 2 hits, 1 strikeout, 1 walk, and 1 run in 3⅔ innings.
Heaney pitched well until the 3rd inning, then hit a 1-run double to left field by Ryan Mountcastle in the 4th inning. 2 outs, 2nd base, 2-1 lead. Dunning appeared at the plate after Aaron Hicks. At full count, the 6-pitch, 93 mph sinker hit the border line, but was ruled a ball.
But Dunning was unmoved. He hit pinch hitter Adam Frazier with a 90 mph high fastball at 2B1S and hit a fly ball to first base. Afterwards, three batters in the 5th inning and even leadoff hitter Adley Lutchman in the 6th inning were hit. Afterwards, he dropped a good change-up to Anthony Santender, but was hit by a solo shot that tied the game with superiority in the chase. Afterwards, he induced Mountcastle to hit a fly ball to center field with a slider. It was later replaced.
Afterwards, Texas did not allow a comeback and took the most important first game of the short-term game 3-2. Dunning was recognized by the scorers as the pitcher who pitched the most effective pitch and earned a relief win. Following his time with the Chicago White Sox in 2020, he returned to the postseason mound for the first time in three years and reported his first thrilling career win.