It was a decisive blow.

NC Dinos catcher Shin Yong-seok decorated his first home run of the season with the winning hit. The local boy, a third-year veteran, started as the No. 6 catcher in a home game against the Futures League KT Wiz at the Changwon Masan Stadium on the 22nd.

After grounding into a double play in the 2nd inning, flying out to right field in the 5th, and striking out in the 6th, Shin caused a major incident in the 8th inning. With nobody out and a chance on third base in the 8th, he faced his fourth at-bat against Choi Yong-jun and hit a large drive. He attacked the fourth pitch in the 2B-1S count and connected for a two-run home run to right field. The distance was 120 meters. Thanks to Shin's winning two-run homer, NC defeated KT 6-4.

NC's starting pitchers Lee Jun-hyuk, Park Joo-hyun, Lim Jeong-ho, and Kim Jin-ho paved the way for Bae Jae-hwan, who took the mound as the fifth pitcher, finishing with one inning of scoreless relief. Kim Si-hoon, who appeared in the 9th, wrapped up three batters tightly and added a save. Seo Jun-kyo led the offense with 2 hits and 2 RBIs in 5 at-bats, while Jo Hyo-won had 2 hits, 1 RBI, and 1 run in 4 at-bats.

After the game, Shin Yong-seok expressed through the team’s Futures Instagram, “As the game progressed tightly into the late innings, the concentration reached its peak. In the 8th inning, my previous batters, (Oh) Young-soo and (Jo) Hyo-won, managed to get on base, allowing me to approach the at-bat a bit more comfortably in that tight situation.”

He also added, “I thought we shouldn’t let the losing streak lengthen, and I wanted to make plays that would help the team unconditionally.”

Shin Yong-seok credited Futures team manager Gong Pil-seong. He said, “Manager Gong told me to think long-term and swing freely. I focused on getting results according to his advice, and it seems that good results came out.”

He further stated, “Today, the fielders struggled a bit in the crisis situation, but I think our senior pitchers created an opportunity for the team to win with their good pitching on the mound.”

Finally, he concluded the interview by saying, “I will be ready to face anything at the ballpark in the future, so I hope to receive a lot of support.

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