The professional baseball LG Twins defeated the Hanwha Eagles, achieving a three-game winning streak to open the season.
LG won 5-0 in the 2025 KBO League game against Hanwha held at Seoul's Jamsil Stadium on the 25th. Park Dong-won broke the 0-0 tie with the winning run in the 7th inning, and in the 8th, Austin and Moon Bo-kyung contributed timely hits, scoring four runs in a big inning to seize the momentum.
LG's starting pitcher Hernandez became the winning pitcher, allowing one hit, one walk, and no runs while striking out eight. Kim Jin-sung recorded his second hold of the season.
Hanwha's starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin took the mound on his birthday, pitching six innings with three hits allowed, five strikeouts, and no runs before being replaced while the score remained 0-0.
Hanwha's starting lineup featured Kim Tae-yeon (left fielder), Moon Hyun-bin (designated hitter), Florial (center fielder), Noh Si-hwan (third baseman), Chae Eun-sung (first baseman), Ahn Chi-hong (second baseman), Lim Jong-chan (right fielder), Choi Jae-hoon (catcher), and Sim Woo-jun (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Ryu Hyun-jin, who celebrated his birthday that day.
LG's starting lineup included Hong Chang-ki (right fielder), Song Chan-ui (left fielder), Austin (first baseman), Moon Bo-kyung (third baseman), Oh Ji-hwan (shortstop), Park Dong-won (catcher), Moon Jeong-bin (designated hitter), Park Hae-min (center fielder), and Koo Bon-hyuk (second baseman). The starting pitcher was foreign player Hernandez.
Veteran Kim Hyun-soo was absent from the starting lineup. Kim performed well against Ryu Hyun-jin last year, hitting three hits in seven at-bats, but has had just one hit in eight at-bats over the first two games of the season. Moon Jeong-bin, who made his debut hit with a home run in a pinch-hit appearance against Lotte on the 23rd, got his first starting opportunity.
The first six innings saw a tightly contested duel between the two starting pitchers. Hernandez allowed one hit and one walk with no runs while throwing 79 pitches. Ryu Hyun-jin showcased his pitching prowess with no runs and three hits allowed on 80 pitches.
Ryu Hyun-jin struck out leadoff hitter Hong Chang-ki looking in the first inning, forced Song Chan-ui into a ground ball out to third, and retired Austin on a fly ball to left field to finish the inning in order. In the second inning, Ryu Hyun-jin allowed a single to Moon Bo-kyung, but got Oh Ji-hwan to pop out to the pitcher and forced Park Dong-won into a ground ball out to second for two outs. Meanwhile, the runner on first advanced to second. With two outs and a runner on second, Ryu struck out Moon Jeong-bin with a changeup (136 km/h) to end the inning without allowing a run. In the third inning, Ryu struck out Park Hae-min and Koo Bon-hyuk back-to-back before finishing the inning with a ground ball out from Hong Chang-ki to the shortstop.
The fourth inning was a challenge for Ryu Hyun-jin. He allowed a double to left-center to leadoff hitter Song Chan-ui. Austin hit a well-placed ground ball up the middle, but shortstop Sim Woo-jun made a diving catch, quickly got to his feet, and threw to first for an out. With one out and a runner on second, Moon Bo-kyung was at bat when the runner on second, Song Chan-ui, attempted to steal third but was tagged out by catcher Choi Jae-hoon's accurate throw. Ryu then ended the inning by getting Moon Bo-kyung to ground out to the pitcher.
In the fifth, Ryu struck out leadoff hitter Oh Ji-hwan, then allowed a soft single to right field from Park Dong-won. He induced a ground ball out from pinch hitter Kim Hyun-soo, and the first baseman made the play to get the lead runner out at second. With two outs and a runner on first, Park Hae-min hit a ground ball that second baseman Ahn Chi-hong fielded while falling down and threw to second to end the inning. In the sixth, he retired Koo Bon-hyuk on a fly out to center, Hong Chang-ki on a ground ball to short, and struck out Song Chan-ui for a quick inning.
In the first inning, Hernandez retired Kim Tae-yeon on a fly ball to left field, caught by left fielder Song Chan-ui leaning against the left field fence. After allowing a single to Moon Hyun-bin, he struck out Florial on three pitches and ended the inning with another strikeout against Noh Si-hwan. In the second inning, Hernandez struck out Chae Eun-sung and Ahn Chi-hong back-to-back with sliders, resulting in four consecutive strikeouts. Lim Jong-chan hit a well-placed ball that first baseman Austin made a diving catch on.
The third inning was a quick three outs. Leadoff hitter Choi Jae-hoon grounded out to second, Sim Woo-jun flew out to third, and Kim Tae-yeon flew out to short to end it. In the fourth inning, Ryu Hyun-jin allowed a walk to leadoff hitter Moon Hyun-bin but struck out Florial for a foul tip, followed by getting Noh Si-hwan on a ground ball out to third for two outs. He then struck out Chae Eun-sung on three pitches.
In the fifth, Ryu recorded two strikeouts for another quick inning. He struck out Ahn Chi-hong and Lim Jong-chan, and Choi Jae-hoon grounded out to first to finish the inning. The sixth inning was also three outs. Leadoff hitter Sim Woo-jun flew out to left field. Kim Tae-yeon's well-placed ball was caught by center fielder Park Hae-min, who ran in with a diving catch. After two outs, Moon Hyun-bin made an out on a ground ball to the pitcher for a quick end.
LG seized an opportunity in the bottom of the seventh when Hanwha's starter Ryu Hyun-jin left the game and Park Sang-won came in as the second pitcher. Leadoff hitter Austin drew a walk on the fifth pitch. Moon Bo-kyung also walked, creating a no-out opportunity with runners on first and second. Oh Ji-hwan bunted to advance the runners, putting one out on second and third.
Park Dong-won's hit was fielded well by Noh Si-hwan, who was playing in on the grass, and although he threw to home, the runner on third, Austin, was fast and safe. The catcher Choi Jae-hoon, who received the one-bounce throw, did not have time to tag and quickly threw to first for the out on the batter. LG took the lead, making it 1-0 with two outs and runners on second. Kim Hyun-soo reached base on a hit-by-pitch. With two outs and runners on first and second, Park Hae-min struck out on the third pitch.
LG brought in Kim Jin-sung as the second pitcher in the top of the eighth. He retired Hanwha's Ahn Chi-hong on a fly ball to second, and got pinch hitter Hwang Young-mook on a ground ball. Pinch hitter Lee Do-yun reached base with a single to left, but pinch hitter Kwon Kwang-min's line drive was caught by center fielder Park Hae-min, who made another outstanding diving catch.
In the bottom of the eighth, LG's leadoff hitter Koo Bon-hyuk drew a walk against the newly changed pitcher Jung Woo-ju. Hong Chang-ki followed with a single to left, putting runners on first and second with no outs. Song Chan-ui attempted a sacrifice bunt on the first pitch but fouled it off, watching three balls go by after that. His fifth pitch sacrifice attempt was also a foul. After hitting two foul balls on a full count, he reached base on a hit-by-pitch.
With no outs and the bases loaded, Hanwha switched to left-handed pitcher Kim Bum-soo. With the bases loaded and no outs, Austin hit a go-ahead two-run single, making it 2-0. Moon Bo-kyung followed with a two-run double that sailed over the first baseman's head, bringing two runners home. The score increased to 4-0.
Oh Ji-hwan's pop-up ball soared high behind second base, but shortstop Lee Do-yun made an error by not catching it. The runner on third scored, making it 5-0. The pitcher was changed again to Kim Jong-soo. Park Dong-won flew out to center, pinch hitter Moon Seong-joo grounded out to second, and Park Hae-min struck out.
LG finished the game with Kim Kang-ryul pitching in the top of the ninth.
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