Rare all-Korean pitching duel set on KBO Opening Day

▲ In this file photo from March 21, 2021, So Hyeong-jun of the KT Wiz pitches against the Doosan Bears in the bottom of the first inning of a Korea Baseball Organization preseason game at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. (Yonhap)

▲ In this file photo from Oct. 14, 2020, Kim Min-woo of the Hanwha Eagles pitches against the Doosan Bears in the bottom of the first inning of a Korea Baseball Organization regular season game at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. (Yonhap)

▲ In this file photo from March 17, 2021, Drew Rucinski of the NC Dinos pitches against the Lotte Giants in the top of the first inning of a Korea Baseball Organization spring training game at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, 400 kilometers southeast of Seoul. (Yonhap)

▲ In this file photo from March 16, 2021, Eric Jokisch of the Kiwoom Heroes pitches against the LG Twins during a Korea Baseball Organization spring training game at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. (Yonhap)

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, April 2 (Yonhap) -- An increasingly rare all-Korean pitching matchup will materialize when the 2021 season of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) begins Saturday.

The KBO announced Opening Day starting pitchers for its 10 clubs on Friday. Games will begin at 2 p.m. Saturday at five stadiums across the nation.

The KT Wiz will send right-hander So Hyeong-jun, the reigning Rookie of the Year, to face the Hanwha Eagles at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, 45 kilometers south of Seoul. The Eagles will counter with their own right-hander, Kim Min-woo.

It's the first Opening Day matchup of two homegrown pitchers since 2012, when the current Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin started for the Eagles and the Lotte Giants sent in former U.S. minor leaguer Song Seung-jun.

KBO teams can carry a maximum two pitchers each, and they typically get Opening Day honors. In 2017, all 10 teams named foreign-born pitchers as their starters to open the season.

This will be first Opening Day assignments for both So and Kim.

So, 19, was the runaway winner of the top rookie prize in 2020 after posting a 13-6 record and a 3.86 ERA in 26 games.

Kim, 25, was 5-10 with a 4.34 ERA last season. With the Eagles in a rebuild and new manager Carlos Subero looking to throw young players into the fire, Kim got the nod ahead of two American starters, Nick Kingham and Ryan Carpenter. Kingham started last year's season opener for the erstwhile SK Wyverns.

At Changwon NC Park in Changwon, 400 kilometers southeast of Seoul, the defending champions NC Dinos will have right-hander Drew Rucinski start his second straight Opening Day. The visiting LG Twins will start right-hander Casey Kelly for the first time in his three seasons in the KBO.

It could be a preview of the Korean Series between the two trendy preseason picks to contend for this year's title. In 2020, Rucinski was 19-5 with a 3.05 ERA and picked up two wins and a save in the Dinos' Korean Series title run. Kelly was 15-7 with a 3.32 ERA last year, including an 11-1 record with a 2.22 ERA in the second half.

In perhaps the most anticipated Opening Day matchup, the Giants will start right-hander Dan Straily against the SSG Landers and their former major league All-Star, Choo Shin-soo. The game is at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, 40 kilometers west of the capital.

Choo was 4-for-11 against Straily during their time in Major League Baseball. Straily also started the 2020 season opener.

The Landers, having taken over from the Wyverns, will have their first-year right-hander Artie Lewicki on the mound.

There will be two games in Seoul. At Jamsil Baseball Stadium, it will be first-year right-hander Walker Lockett of the Doosan Bears hosting second-year ace Aaron Brooks and the Kia Tigers.

The reigning ERA champion Eric Jokisch will be making his first Opening Day start for the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. The visiting Samsung Lions will have second-year righty David Buchanan.

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