Ending 8-year gap with 7-inning shutout…Ha Hyeon-seung age 18, defeats Japan 2–0 and wins Asian championship
Korea's U-18 baseball national team defeated Japan 2–0 in the final of the Asian Youth Baseball Championship on September 13. Ha Hyeon-seung led the team's first championship win in 8 years with a 7-inning 1-hit shutout victory.
Translated from Korean with AI assistance. Read the original. Sources and original publication dates are retained.
Summary in three lines
- Korea's U-18 national team defeated Japan 2–0 in the final and won the championship for the first time in 8 years since 2018
- Ha Hyeon-seung earned a shutout victory in the final with 7 innings, 1 hit allowed, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts, and no runs allowed
- Ha Hyeon-seung's tournament record is 3 games, 3 wins, 15⅔ innings, 25 strikeouts, no runs allowed
"I decided to start my professional career in the KBO League." That's what Busan High School third-year student Ha Hyeon-seung said on social media in May 2026. Four months later, on September 13, he held the mound at the Taipei Dome final by himself for all 7 innings. Korea defeated Japan2–0and reached the top of Asia. During the 15⅔ innings he pitched in this tournament, the opposing team failed to score a single run.
Korea defeats Japan in final 2–0, error-aided first run and Jo Hui-seong's go-ahead hit
The only points scored in the final were 2.Japan Baseball National Team official game recordsAccording to the official records, Korea obtained the first run via an error by Japan's catcher's throw in the bottom of the 2nd inning. In the bottom of the 5th inning, Yushin High School outfielder Jo Hui-seong added 1 run with a go-ahead hit. The final ended in the 7th inning.
The game ended in the top of the 7th inning. Ha Hyeon-seung struck out three Japanese batters in a row and finished the shutout. His final pitching record was7 innings, 1 hit allowed, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts, no runs allowedThat's the record. One error, one go-ahead hit, and a shutout. Those three elements defined the final.Sports Chosunreported that this championship was the 6th in tournament history. As official historical championship records could not be obtained, the overall count is based on multiple reports. The national team's head coach is Deoksu High School's Jung Yun-jin.
14th Asian Youth Baseball Championship final standings
| Rank | Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Korea | Champion |
| 2 | Japan | Runner-up |
| 3 | Taiwan | Bronze medal |
| 4 | Philippines | Bronze medal match loss |
| 5 | Hong Kong | Playoff round |
Ha Hyeon-seung stats 15⅔ innings 25K, fastball 150 km/h and 153 km/h
Ha Hyeon-seung's tournament record is 3 games, 3 wins undefeated,15⅔ innings, 25 strikeouts, no runs allowedOut of 47 outs, he struck out 25. That's 53%. Converting to 9 innings, his average strikeouts per game would be approximately 14.4 (25×9÷15⅔). He recorded 12 strikeouts in only one game, the Taiwan game, and his longest outing was the final.
Ha Hyeon-seung's pitching record by game
| Game | Opponent | Innings | Strikeouts | Runs allowed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group stage | Taiwan | 5⅔ | 12 | 0 |
| Super round | Japan | 3 | 5 | 0 |
| Final | Japan | 7 | 8 | 0 |
The fastball speed varies depending on the source.MBCintroduced a top speed of 153 km/h in its September 8 report. According to reports, Busan High School coach Park Gye-won explained that this record was set in an August Mokdong game. However, the official Japan representative team's super round report lists the maximum velocity in that Japan game as 150 km/h. The 153 km/h figure was reported by multiple media outlets, but cannot be confirmed as his official maximum velocity based on official measurements, nor is there evidence that it occurred in the final.
Ha Hyeon-seung age 18, projected as overall draft first pick
Ha Hyeon-seung's date of birth listed on the WBSC official roster is March 9, 2008. As of September 14,18 years oldHowever, this date of birth has not been cross-verified with a second source. At Busan High School, he serves as both pitcher and batter. His pitching record for this high school season as of the report date is 13 games, 3 wins, undefeated, with an ERA of 0.45. In his final high school game in August's Phoenix Cup, he recorded 6 innings with 10 strikeouts.
In May, instead of going to MLB, he chose the domestic professional stage.Mania TimesReporter Kang Hae-young reported on September 12 that he is likely to be selected as the overall first pick in the 2027 KBO new player draft.
The remaining procedure is selection in the 2027 KBO new player draft. His destination team had not been confirmed as of September 14.
Related official websites
- Japan Baseball National Team official final game records— Check final inning-by-inning scoring and pitcher records
- Japan Baseball National Team official tournament schedule and final standings— Check full tournament schedule and final team standings
- Korea Baseball Softball Association Baseball Tournament Records System— Search domestic amateur tournament records
Representative image · archive photo · not an on-site photo of the current game in the article · Photo=Pexels(Phil Evenden)
Related resources worth viewing
·"Defeated Japan 5-2"…Coach Eo U-hong's passing, Asia's only World Championship victory
·"Busan's Ohtani"…Ha Hyeon-seung 12 strikeouts, U-18 baseball result Korea wins 2-0
·"The 18-game losing streak is over"…Kim Yoon-ha, Gwangju goes quiet over first win in 731 days
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