I was really angry at myself. I thought, 'Sung-yeop, let's really do this properly.'

Professional baseball player Na Sung-yeop of the Lotte Giants led the team to break a three-game losing streak. Lotte won 3-1 against the KT Wiz in a regular season game held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 29th.

Lotte had fallen into a three-game losing pit. The batting lineup had been frozen with only 10 runs in the previous six games. The overall pace of the batting lineup was at its worst, and the team had no home runs. Someone needed to break the ice.

The player who broke the frustrating flow was Na Sung-yeop. In the second inning with the game tied 0-0 and one out and no runners on base, he hit a solo home run over the left-center field wall against KT starting pitcher William Cuevas. He targeted a 145 km fastball on the third pitch with a 1-ball, 1-strike count and sent it over the wall. It was the team's first home run of the season.

Although they immediately allowed a 1-1 tie in the top of the third, Lotte's batting lineup was different from before. With the game tied 1-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning, they took the lead 3-1 with Jeon Joon-woo's timely double and Kim Min-sung's infield grounder.

In addition to his home run, Na Sung-yeop also hit a double to left-center field with one out in the top of the sixth, completing a multi-hit game with extra-base hits.

Na Sung-yeop said, "The entire batting lineup has been struggling, so I hope this home run helps maintain a good condition. Lately, when I step into the batter's box, I feel like I try not to think about the previous hits. As I forgot about earlier hits, it seems that my timing is gradually coming together. The coach also seemed to be more pleased with me."

A different, overwhelming emotion also surged. Normally not very talkative, he said, "I almost screamed when I stepped on home plate. I'm not that kind of person, so I didn't shout, but it was really good enough to scream."

Looking at the trajectory of the home run, Na Sung-yeop said he did not think the ball would go over; he had lost faith in his hitting and the ball itself. He explained, "Honestly, I didn't think it would go over. Recently, my pace has been really poor, so I was just hoping it wouldn't be caught. It went over, but I had no thought that it would. Since the entire team's hitting was down, I think negative thoughts came to me first."

In the last at-bat of the 9th inning in the previous game (on the 28th), Na Sung-yeop hit a single to left-center, creating a final opportunity against closer Park Young-hyun. Na Sung-yeop was angry at himself. This anger turned into determination. He explained, "When I was entering that last at-bat yesterday, I was really angry at myself. I thought, 'Sung-yeop, let's really do this properly,' and that was when my timing started to come together. If it had been before, I would have had to retreat powerless, but I gained determination. It seems that things went well from there, leading to a good outcome."

He also felt a great sense of responsibility toward the coaching staff. He said, "Since the entire team has been struggling with hitting, I thought the home runs wouldn't go over either. But everyone is well-prepared. The coach and assistants Im Hoon and Lee Seong-gon research every day. They also try to lighten our spirits. I feel a sense of guilt about that. I’m just glad it was resolved quickly."

With Na Sung-yeop's home run, Lotte has at least extinguished the urgent fire of a three-game losing streak. The entire batting lineup recorded eight hits, including four extra-base hits with the home run, seeming to find their rhythm. Can Lotte rebound again, taking Na Sung-yeop's home run as a catalyst?

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