Lower than Son Min-han's MVP days... Lotte's record of only 15 players allowed, new ace takes on the challenge

When asked to name the "biggest hit" of the year for Lotte and the entire KBO league, many would not hesitate to mention Na Gyun-ahn, 25.

A catcher-turned-pitcher who made a successful transition last year, going 3-8 with a 3.98 ERA, Na Gyun-ahn started the season with two starts to open the year and went 4-0 with a 1.34 ERA in April alone, earning him the KBO League's April MVP award.

After a stellar April, Na faltered in May. He gave up five runs on five hits in four innings against the KIA in Gwangju on May 3, which ended the team's 10-game winning streak, and four runs on eight hits in five innings against Doosan in Sasik on May 11. His season ERA soared to 2.95, prompting Lotte manager Larry Sutton to wittily describe him as "coming down from the heavens to the earth."

But Na has bounced back. After breaking out of his slump against Hanwha in Daejeon on the 17th with 6⅓ innings of four-hit ball, Nae-gyun-ahn proved his ace status once again on the 23rd against Sasik NC, throwing six innings of five-hit ball and picking up his fifth win of the season.

"My command was good when it was good, but when it was bad, my command was disappointing," he said. "I think the power of my forkball and fastball was better than in the previous game."

His season ERA, which once threatened to soar into the triple digits, has been lowered to 2.45. He is currently ranked sixth in the league in ERA. If you look at his ERA alone, it's lower than the 2.46 ERA of Son Min-han, who won the 2005 regular season MVP. This raises the question of how long Na will be able to keep his ERA in the low 2s, which has become a symbol of a top pitcher in the league.

Only 15 players in Lotte's history have been allowed a sub-2 ERA. From Noh Sang-soo (2.94 in 1982) to Choi Dong-won (2.89 in 1983, 2.40 in 1984, 1.92 in 1985, 1.55 in 1986, 2.81 in 1987), Lim Ho-gyun (2.95 in 1984), Kim Jung-haeng (2.73 in 1985, 2.90 in 1986), Park Dong-soo (2.73 in 1985, 2.54 in 1986), Yoon Hak-gil (2.57 in 1987, 2.70 in 1989), Park Dong-hee (2.47 in 1991), Yeom Jong-seok (2. 33 in 1992 and 2.98 in 1995), Yoon Hyung-bae (2.46 in 1993), Kim Tae-seok (2.95 in 1996), Park Ji-chul (2.45 in 1997), Park Seok-jin (2.98 in 2001), Son Min-han (2.46 in 2005, 2.78 in 2006 and 2.97 in 2008), Shane Youman (2.55 in 2012) and Dan Streeley (2.50 in 2020).

It will be interesting to see if Na Gyun-ahn can become the first Lotte pitcher in 15 years to achieve a sub-2.00 ERA, as it hasn't happened since Son Min-han in 2008.

"I don't think about records. 스포츠토토 I just play with the idea of doing what I can do. I don't care about ERA or wins because the results will come at the end of the season," he said, adding that he is not conscious of the record, "I have a goal to play a full-time season first. I think if I play full-time every time, the results will follow," he said, emphasizing that the first step is to stay healthy and play a full season.