Return after 417 days... 151km Lee Eui-ri, comeback after elbow surgery with 'Hope and Challenges'

[Financial News]  Professional baseball KIA Tigers' left-handed fireballer Lee Eui-ri (23) returned to the first-team mound after 417 days.
Lee Eui-ri started in the home game against NC Dinos in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League held at Gwangju Kia Champions Field on the 20th, recording 4 innings, 4 hits, 4 strikeouts, 2 walks, 1 hit-by-pitch, and 2 runs. Although he allowed two solo home runs, it was significant that he returned in a healthy form after more than a year of rehabilitation.
His last first-team pitch was in the Changwon NC game on May 29 last year. At that time, he was taken out early due to elbow pain and was diagnosed with a left elbow ligament injury, undergoing medial collateral ligament reconstruction and bone fragment removal surgery, entering a long rehabilitation.
In his comeback game, he recorded a top speed of 151 km/h and threw 64 pitches. It was a velocity exceeding his pre-surgery average speed (145.8 km/h). In the first inning, he started shakily by allowing a left-field solo home run to Kim Joo-won. On a 2-ball-1-strike count, Kim Joo-won hit a slider that was thrown inside. In the second inning, he threw a first-pitch fastball to Park Gun-woo, allowing another left-field solo home run.
However, he found his stability afterward. In the third inning, he allowed a hit-by-pitch but no hits, and in the fourth inning, he achieved the only three-up-three-down inning of the day, showing potential. Particularly in the fourth inning against Kim Hyung-jun, he mixed in curves and changeups to perfectly disrupt timing and struck him out.
In this game, Lee Eui-ri initially pushed hard with fastballs and sliders, but from the fourth inning, he mixed in curves to dominate NC batters. With fastballs in the 150 km/h range combined with curves, opposing batters could not time their swings. Although his control is not yet perfect, his pitch variety is what can ultimately win games. In that sense, the fourth inning was a hopeful one.


This comeback game left both hope and challenges. Most importantly, it is encouraging that his arm has sufficiently recovered. Even after surgery, he maintained his 150 km/h range velocity, proving successful rehabilitation. However, control issues remain. There were several hit-by-pitches and missed pitches. This has been a challenge for him even before the surgery.
For KIA, Lee Eui-ri's return is a godsend.
Yoon Young-chul needs to be re-examined in at least 4 weeks, and foreign pitcher Oller will only be seen around early August. There is a big gap in the starting rotation. Therefore, Lee Eui-ri's return is a crucial puzzle piece in starting the second-half championship race.
In this game, Lee Eui-ri showed both his strengths and challenges. And what is clear is that his left arm, which returned after 417 days of waiting, is ready to be a great strength for KIA again.
KIA has closed the gap to 0.5 games behind Lotte, based on Lee Eui-ri's strong pitching.


jsi@fnnews.com Jeon Sang-il Reporter