The Hanwha Eagles dominated the Kiwoom Heroes with an 11-5 victory, extending their winning streak to three games. In the away match held at Gocheok Sky Dome on the 12th, Hanwha’s explosive offense and strong pitching proved too much for Kiwoom.
Hanwha improved to a 17-20 record, while Kiwoom fell to 13 wins, 1 draw, and 24 losses, remaining at the bottom of the standings. Starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin earned his fourth win of the season, allowing three runs on five hits with nine strikeouts and two walks over five innings.
The offensive fireworks were led by Noh Si-hwan, who delivered a grand slam among his three hits and drove in five runs. Jonathan Ferrada, Moon Hyun-bin, and Kang Baek-ho also contributed three hits each, providing ample support for the pitching staff.
Kiwoom starting pitcher Bae Dong-hyun had a disastrous outing, surrendering eight runs on 11 hits, including a home run, over just three innings, taking the loss.
Hanwha wasted no time, jumping on Bae from the first inning. After Hwang Young-muk was hit by a pitch, Ferrada singled, and Kang Baek-ho walked to load the bases with one out. Noh Si-hwan then crushed a 144 km/h fastball over the center fielder’s head for a grand slam. Hanwha added another run later in the inning on an RBI sacrifice fly from Choi Jae-hoon.
The momentum continued in the second inning. With two outs, Moon Hyun-bin hit a deep ball to right-center that was misplayed by the center fielder, allowing him to reach third. Kang Baek-ho followed with an RBI double to make it 6-0.
Hanwha extended the lead in the fourth inning. Singles by Ferrada and Moon Hyun-bin set up runners at second and third with no outs. Kang Baek-ho’s infield single scored Ferrada, and Noh Si-hwan’s double brought home Moon, pushing the score to 8-0.
Kiwoom finally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth. After singles by Ahn Chi-hong and Choi Joo-hwan, Brooks hit a sacrifice fly to center to score one run. They added two more in the fifth when Ahn Chi-hong delivered a two-run single following a wild pitch by Ryu Hyun-jin.
Hanwha answered in the sixth. Leading off, Kang Baek-ho launched a solo home run off reliever Kim Seo-joon. Kiwoom responded in the bottom half by scoring another run on a single by Seo Geon-chang, cutting the lead to 9-4.
Hanwha sealed the victory in the eighth. With walks and singles setting the table, Kim Dong-kyu executed a double steal that allowed Lee Won-seok to score. Kiwoom managed one more run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly, but Hanwha countered in the ninth with an RBI single from Moon Hyun-bin.
Lee Min-woo closed the game for Hanwha in the ninth, retiring the side in order.
