Why did the Kiwoom Heroes release such a first-line foreign ace? Enmanuel de Heysus (29) is now establishing himself as a foreign ace representing KT Wiz.메이저놀이터

Heysus started the game against the Hanwha Eagles in Daejeon on the 5th and led the team to a landslide 7-0 victory by pitching 95 pitches, two hits, two strikeouts, and eight strikeouts in seven innings. Heysus showed off his best condition by pitching seven scoreless innings for two consecutive games, and KT saved its must-win group while using only two bullpen pitchers, including Jeon Yong-joo (1 inning) and Choi Yong-joon (1 inning).

Heyesus, the left-hander, beat Hanwha batters with fastballs with a maximum speed of 152 km and an average speed of 149 km. He freely mixed fastballs with sliders (22), changeups (16), curves (6), and two-seam fastballs (5), drawing a flurry of misfortunes. The number of strikeouts per nine innings was 10.19, which was like a pitcher who ranks fourth in the league.

The move comes as a way to convince why KT has been active in the scramble for Heyesus. After signing a contract with Kiwoom last year, Heyesus came to Korea for the first time and recorded 30 games, 13 wins and 11 losses, 161 ⅓ innings, 178 strikeouts and an ERA of 3.68. Even though Kiwoom was the lowest team with 58 wins (86 losses) in the season, it won double-digit wins and set the stage for renewal.

However, Kiwoom made his head tilted by breaking up not only with Heysus, but also with Ariel Furado, who played as a 10-win pitcher for Kiwoom for two consecutive years until 2023 and 2024. Kiwoom made the other nine clubs laugh by even releasing the two players' right to hold. In fact, amid a fierce scramble, KT held Heysus for $1 million (about 1.3 billion won), and Furado built a new nest at the Samsung Lions.

Heysus is practically an ace while first starter William Cuevas, who KT renewed for $1.5 million (about 2 billion won) this year, is suffering from severe sluggishness. He recorded five wins and four losses, 68 innings and 2.51 ERA in 12 games. He ranks third in ERA in the league.

There was also a time when KT manager Lee Kang-chul had a headache. Heissus left on April 19 due to a thigh muscle injury and was away for 11 days, but his pitching has not been good since his return. The ERA in five games in May was very high at 4.45. If domestic starters such as Oh Won-seok, So Hyung-joon, and Ko Young-pyo had not gone solid, KT could have been pushed out of the mid-range battle.

Thankfully for Lee, Heyesus has proved that he is now in perfect condition with his good pitching in the last two games. With Cuevas only 2-6 with 69 ⅓ innings and 6.36 ERA in 13 games, Heyesus' rebound is very welcome.