NC’s newest foreign pitcher, Tanner Tully (29), 메이저사이트 got his first KBO ball in the U.S. before arriving in Korea. NC pitcher Drew Luchinski (35, Oakland Athletics), who returned to the U.S. Major League Baseball this year, hand-delivered the ball to Tanner.
Luchinski and Tanner are both Ohio State University alumni who live in the same neighborhood. They also belong to a group of eight or nine baseball players who train together in the offseason. When Luchinski heard that Tanner was headed to Korea, he set out to meet him. He went to Tanner’s house, dropped off some KBO balls, and helped him get acclimated.
“As soon as I heard I was going to Korea, Luchinski came to my house with a baseball, and I played catch with it,” Tanner laughs, adding, “He told me to enjoy life in Korea more than baseball. He told me that if I enjoy my life in Korea, the fans will like me and the results will be good.”
Luchinski led the NC to its first championship in 2020 and is considered the best pitcher in franchise history. He spent four years with the organization from 2019-2022, posting a career record of 53-36 in 121 games (732⅔ innings) with a 3.06 ERA and 657 strikeouts. He consistently pitched over 177 innings for four straight years. After last year’s season, he made a major league U-turn, signing a one-year, $3 million guaranteed contract with Oakland for up to $8 million over two years with a team option for next year.
[OSEN=Changwon, Lee Seok-woo Reporters] Drew Ruchinski during his NC days. 2022.09.23 / foto0307@osen.co.kr
[Photo] Drew Ruchinski in Oakland. ⓒGettyimages (All rights reserved)
But he started the season on the disabled list with a strained left hamstring and struggled mightily after being called up to the majors in late April, going winless in four games (18 innings) with a 9.00 ERA. He was then sidelined again with gastritis, and last month he underwent back surgery and is now out for the season. It’s been a tough time for Luchinski personally, but when he heard that Tanner was headed to the KBO, not to another team, but to his hometown NC, he went out of his way to deliver a baseball.
Tanner made his KBO debut against the Changwon Hanwha on May 15, giving up three runs on six hits (two home runs) in six innings with four strikeouts and no walks, but it was a quality start. He gave up two home runs, one to Noh in the first and one to Nick Williams in the sixth, but his stuff was as solid as it’s been known to be. He didn’t have a fiery fastball, but he was efficient enough to get through six innings on 86 pitches.
Tanner said, “I was happy to be out there after a long time. It was nice to have a lot of fans at the ballpark,” he said. “It’s a new part of the season, but it’s the same baseball. It takes time to adjust to the jet lag and the ball, but as the game went on, the ball felt good in my hands. From the third inning on, my slider movement got better and better,” he reflected on his debut. The slider, which is his main weapon, curves hard to the outside of lefties, resembles the sweepers that are so popular these days. “It has a lot of lateral movement, so it looks like a sweeper, but I don’t think it’s that much. I think you could call it a slider.”
[OSEN=Changwon, Lee Seok-woo Reporters] NC Tanner Tully. 2023.08.15 / foto0307@osen.co.kr
[OSEN=Changwon, Lee Seokwoo] NC Tanner Tully. 2023.08.15 / foto0307@osen.co.kr
It’s been three weeks since his last start in the United States, so he’s still not 100 percent. In his debut, his fastball was up to 144km and averaged 140km, which is lower than when he was in the United States. NC manager Kang Myung-ho said, “He showed the stable innings we expected, but both his top and average velocity dropped by about two kilometers. Since it was his first start, it seems to be a conditioning issue. His RPM (revolutions per minute) was a little higher than when he was in the United States. I’m hoping he’ll find his velocity as he plays.”
“I hadn’t pitched in three weeks, so I went into (my first outing) with a live pitching concept,” Tanner said. As I continue to build my body, my velocity will improve. In the U.S., my fastball has been hovering between 88 and 91 mph (141.6 and 146.5 km/h). “My goal is to pitch as many innings as possible as a starter and help the team win,” he said.
[OSEN=Changwon, Lee Seok-woo Reporters] NC Tanner Tully. 2023.08.15 / foto0307@osen.co.kr
[OSEN=Changwon, Lee Seok-woo] On August 15, the NC Dinos and Hanwha Eagles of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League played at NC Park in Changwon. NC Dinos Park Min-woo talks to Tanner after his defense in the top of the fifth inning.