[MyDaily = Reporter Lee Jeong-won] “Congrats, brother. We truly love you.”
Familiar faces who remain beloved by Hanwha Eagles fans made an appearance at the ballpark.
On May 24 at Daejeon’s Hanwha Life Ballpark, during Game 6 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League series between the Hanwha Eagles and the Doosan Bears, Ryu Hyun-jin reached a major milestone. Ryu, the starter that day, worked 6 2/3 innings, allowed six hits, issued no walks, struck out three and surrendered two runs. He earned his fifth win of the season and recorded his 200th career victory across the KBO and Major League Baseball.
Across his KBO career, Ryu has appeared in 253 games with a 122-69 record, one save and a 2.96 ERA. In MLB, he totaled 186 games with a 78-48 record, one save and a 3.27 ERA.
After the game, the club held a celebration to honor Ryu’s milestone. Manager Kim Kyung-moon presented him with a bouquet and embraced him, while team director Son Hyuk handed over a framed plaque commemorating the 200th win. Teammates donned commemorative T-shirts to salute the veteran’s achievement.
The team then screened a congratulatory video featuring many figures from Ryu’s time with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays. Rick Honeycutt, Japanese pitcher Kenta Maeda, Joc Pederson, Alex Wood, Kenley Jansen, Andre Ethier, Justin Turner and Adrian Gonzalez, among others familiar to Korean baseball fans, sent messages celebrating Ryu.
Hanwha fans erupted when two more familiar faces appeared: Cody Ponce and Ryan Weiss, both now pitching in the U.S. Last season, Ponce produced a dominant 17-1 record in 29 starts with 252 strikeouts and a 1.89 ERA, becoming the first foreign pitcher in the KBO to sweep the four major pitching titles; he also earned league MVP and a Gold Glove. Weiss, who joined midseason in 2024 and went 5-5 with a 3.73 ERA in 16 appearances, posted a 16-5 record with a 2.87 ERA in 30 starts last season, forming a potent one-two punch with Ponce and helping Hanwha reach the Korean Series for the first time in 19 years.
Ponce said, “Hello. Congrats, brother. You inspire not only me but everyone in the game.”
Weiss added, “You’ve meant so much to me and my family. We always root for you. Thank you for being a great mentor and leader. We truly love you.”
Ryu smiled and thanked the organization: “I’m so grateful the team put this together so well and made it special. I didn’t know there was a video, so I’m really thankful.”
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