The Hanwha Eagles broke a six-game losing streak. Their ace delivered a perfect performance as soon as he returned.
Kim Kyung-moon's Hanwha Eagles beat the Lotte Giants 5-0 in a regular-season professional baseball game held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 18th. With this, Hanwha escaped a long six-game losing streak. They are 7-10 on the season.
Lee Won-seok (center fielder) Peraza (right fielder) Moon Hyun-bin (left fielder) Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter) Chae Eun-seong (first baseman) Lee Do-yoon (second baseman) Kim Tae-yean (third baseman) Choi Jae-hun (catcher) Shim Woo-jun (shortstop) were listed in the starting lineup. Ryu Hyun-jin returned to the first-team roster and took the mound for the first time in 11 days.
Hanwha scored the first run in the top of the third. They took the lead with a big inning. After one out in the third, Lee Won-seok created an opportunity with a triple that struck the upper part of the right-field fence. Peraza then delivered an RBI double to right field for the first run. Later, on a first-and-third opportunity after a Lotte wild pitch, Moon Hyun-bin hit a grounder to the second baseman but reached on a fielder's choice, adding another run. With one out and a runner on first the opportunity continued, and Kang Baek-ho drove in the runner from first with a double to center-right. They pulled ahead 3-0.
In the seventh, Hanwha's leadoff batter Lee Won-seok reached on a walk against Jeong Cheol-won. Peraza again hit a single to right off the new pitcher Kyoyama, creating a no-out, 1-2 base opportunity. At that moment, the runner on second, Lee Won-seok, was picked off by catcher Son Seong-bin and called out, seeming to douse the rally. But with one out and a runner on first, Moon Hyun-bin delivered an RBI double to left-center, producing the long-awaited insurance run. They extended the lead to 4-0.
In the top of the eighth, leadoff batter Lee Do-yoon reached with a mis-hit infield single to the third baseman, Kim Tae-yean laid down a sacrifice bunt, and Choi Jae-hun and Shim Woo-jun drew walks to create a bases-loaded, one-out opportunity. Lee Won-seok hit a ball toward the second baseman that had the makings of a double-play, but because it did not turn into a double play they managed to add another run. They effectively put the game away at 5-0.
Hanwha's Ryu Hyun-jin pitched a perfect performance, going seven innings, 86 pitches, allowing four hits, zero walks, three strikeouts and no runs, and left the mound. After Ryu Hyun-jin, Kim Jong-soo and Cho Dong-uk pitched in the eighth and Cushing in the ninth to preserve the win that snapped the six-game losing streak. Offensively, Peraza went 3-for-4 with one RBI and two runs scored, and leadoff hitter Lee Won-seok also did his job with a 2-for-4 game including one RBI, one run and one walk. Moon Hyun-bin had two RBIs, and Kang Baek-ho also went 2-for-4 with one RBI, contributing to the end of the six-game skid.
After the game, Kim Kyung-moon said, "Everyone had a hard time during the losing streak, but today the players' will to win seemed strong. I want to praise that spirit," and added, "The hero of the victory was Ryu Hyun-jin, as expected. As a starting pitcher he was efficient over seven innings and led the team to victory. His veteran pitching stopped the losing streak."
He added, "It was a game in which everyone performed well, including the hitters who produced early runs and helped open up the game."
Hanwha will start Wilkell Hernandez as the scheduled starter on the 19th after three days of rest; he was the starting pitcher on the 15th. At that time Hernandez recorded 1/3 of an inning, seven hits, two walks, one strikeout and seven earned runs before leaving the mound. He threw 35 pitches. Lotte will start Park Se-woong as their starter.
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