Oh Seung-hwan's high speed slider

Oh Seung-hwan has become a guardian angel of the St. Louis Cardinals in his debut season there. Until Tuesday, Oh took the mound in 29 games, with adjusted ERA at 1.76 during 30 and two thirds of innings. He has been surely playing his role as a trusted player. He has the lowest ERA in this team, topping St. Louis Cardinals' super relief pitcher Trevor Rosenthal.

Comparing with all relief pitchers in Major League who threw balls in more than 30 innings this season, Oh's performance stands out further. Besides ERA, he also ranks first in strike-outs with the lowest contact ratio at 61.8 percent. He ranks second in WAR, or wins above replacement. ZiPS, Major League statistics system, estimates his performance at ERA of 3.07 and 49 strike outs, and Oh is geared to far surpass that record.

Oh's strength lies in speed. His average slider ball speed is 85.1 miles, beating league average at 84 miles. Considering that Oh's strength is heavy fast ball (92.3 miles per hour), which is the same as league average, his slider is genuinely outstanding.

Some analysts say Oh's style of using strong grasping power to rotate the ball is suitable to the official ball. Major League's official ball stitches are relatively less pronounced while mud is covered on the surface to prevent it from slipping, which is supporting Oh's slider balls. Oh has actually expressed satisfaction on the official ball since his debut.

강홍구기자 windup@donga.com