Ryu Hyun-jin Becomes First Korean Pitcher to Reach 2,500 Career Strikeouts in Korea and U.S.

Ryu Hyun-jin (39, Hanwha Eagles) has become the first Korean pitcher to reach the 2,500-strikeout milestone in his combined career in Korea and the United States.

Ryu achieved the feat by striking out Kwon Hyeok-bin on a swing-and-miss in the top of the second inning during a 2026 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League game against the Kiwoom Heroes, held at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon today (July 19).

After conceding three consecutive hits at the start of the second inning and falling behind 0-1, Ryu faced Kiwoom's eighth hitter, Kwon Hyeok-bin, with runners on first and third and no outs. With a count of 0 balls and 2 strikes, he threw a 145 km/h fastball inside to strike him out.

With this, Ryu recorded his 2,500th career strikeout, combining his totals from the Korean KBO League and the U.S. Major League Baseball (MLB).

Ryu is the first Korean pitcher to reach the 2,500-strikeout mark.

Including records from leagues in other countries, only four Korean pitchers have surpassed 2,000 career strikeouts, including Ryu.

The others are Yang Hyeon-jong (2,239 strikeouts, KIA Tigers), who holds the all-time KBO record, Song Jin-woo (2,048, retired), and Kim Kwang-hyun (2,020, SSG Landers).

After reaching the 2,500-strikeout milestone, Ryu prevented further runs by striking out the next two batters, Yeo Dong-wook and Choo Jae-hyun, with one out and runners on first and third.

Ryu added one strikeout in each inning from the third to the sixth, finishing his outing with 4 runs allowed on 8 hits and 7 strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings.

This brought his career total to 2,506 strikeouts.

Ryu, who debuted with Hanwha in 2006, moved to the MLB in 2013 before returning to the KBO League in 2024.

Ryu recorded 934 strikeouts over 11 seasons in the MLB and had accumulated 1,565 strikeouts in the KBO League as of yesterday.

Ryu recorded his first career strikeout by fanning the first batter he faced, Ahn Jae-man, on a swing-and-miss during his professional debut against the LG Twins at Jamsil on April 12, 2006. On June 19, 2011, he became the youngest (24 years, 2 months, 25 days) and fastest (153 games) player to reach 1,000 strikeouts against the Doosan Bears.

After recording 1,238 strikeouts during his first seven seasons in the KBO League through 2012, he moved to the MLB in 2013 and recorded 934 strikeouts over 11 seasons through 2023, surpassing 2,000 combined strikeouts.

Upon returning to the KBO League, he recorded 135 strikeouts in 2024 and 122 in 2025. Entering this season, he had 70 strikeouts as of yesterday, leaving him just one shy of the 2,500 mark.

Ryu was originally scheduled to start against the LG Twins on July 5, but the game was canceled due to rain, delaying his milestone to the second half of the season.

Ryu has led the KBO League in strikeouts five times—in 2006, 2007 (178), 2009 (188), 2010 (187), and 2012 (210)—tying him with Sun Dong-yol for the most strikeout titles.

He is also one of the few pitchers, alongside Sun Dong-yol and Choi Dong-won, to have recorded 200 strikeouts in a single season more than once.

Meanwhile, the all-time strikeout leader in MLB history is Nolan Ryan, who recorded 5,714 strikeouts over 27 seasons.

In Nippon Professional Baseball, the all-time strikeout leader is Masaichi Kaneda, who recorded 4,490 strikeouts over 20 seasons.

(Photo courtesy of Hanwha Eagles, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.