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Bears pitcher Choi Min-seok lives out childhood dream in win against Heroes

Published: 09 Apr. 2026, 09:26 Updated: 09 Apr. 2026, 13:45

Doosan Bears starter Choi Min-seok pitches against the Kiwoom Heroes during the two clubs' KBO regular-season game at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on April 8 in this photo provided by the Bears. [YONHAP]

Two starts into his sophomore campaign in the KBO, Doosan Bears right-hander Choi Min-seok lived out a childhood dream on Wednesday night.

With his team leading the Kiwoom Heroes 5-0 with two outs in the top of the sixth inning at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul, Choi was lifted for a reliever. As he walked off the mound, thousands of Bears fans packing the stands above the first-base dugout saluted their pitching hero with a thunderous ovation.

“I've been dreaming of a moment like that since I was little,” said Choi, a Seoul native pitching for his hometown team, following a 7-3 win. “This will stay with me for a long time.”

Though the sample size is still small, Choi has some statistical oddities this year. He has allowed more walks than hits, with nine free passes against five knocks in 11 2/3 innings.

In his season debut on April 2, the 19-year-old held the Samsung Lions to two hits but walked five men while allowing one unearned run in six innings. Then on Wednesday, he gave up three hits but handed out four walks.

“I am pleased with the results in both games, but once again, I kept putting myself into trouble with these walks,” Choi said sheepishly. “But if I can cut down on walks, I should keep having good games.”

After a clean first inning, he allowed a base runner in every inning from second to sixth but escaped unscathed each time. He got an inning-ending double play ball in the second, worked around two walks in the third and stranded a leadoff single in the fourth.

Then in the fifth, he survived a bases-loaded jam by striking out Lee Ju-hyoung with a two-seam fastball, his bread-and-butter pitch. He finished off four of his six strikeouts with that two-seamer.

“I was just relieved that I completed another inning,” he said of that key strikeout. “I wasn't sure if I was going back out for another inning, but I enjoyed that moment for sure.”

Choi made 98 pitches, 62 of them for strikes. He threw 44 two-seamers, 25 cutters, 20 splitters and nine sliders.

“I got hit around in spring training, and I think I've had some luck on my side early in the regular season,” he said with a smile. “I want to get it done with my own abilities, not just some lucky breaks.”

Choi blamed his penchant for walking batters on his mental lapses, not anything mechanical.

“I've been walking a lot of batters after getting two outs because of loss of concentration,” he said. “I have to be sharper mentally to fix that issue.”

Choi and American starter Zach Logue have been the two pillars of the Bears' rotation so far. Chris Flexen, the one other American pitcher, is out a few weeks with a shoulder injury, while two other homegrown hurlers, Gwak Been and Choi Seung-yong, have given up a combined 17 runs in 16 2/3 innings.

Choi Min-seok said he is embracing his role in the rotation.

“My coaches have told me a starting pitcher is the face of his team and he has to carry the load every game,” he said. “I'm taking the mound with a stronger sense of responsibility now.”

Yonhap