The Lotte Giants’ Han Dong-hee, who had been struggling with his heart, smiled. “Busan Seagull” and “Come back to Busan Port” echoed in the sky above the western port city.
Lotte pounded out 11 hits in the seventh game of the season against the SSG Landers on April 18 at SSG Landers Field in Incheon, South Korea.
In addition to Barnes’ stellar performance, the game was highlighted by Jeon Jun-woo, who continued his uptick in hitting from the previous day, and the “twins” Han Dong-hee and Yoon Dong-hee, who exploded together.
After struggling in April and May, Han was scratched from the first team on May 5, giving her time to readjust. She returned to the first team on the 15th after hitting 3-for-7 with the Futures to get her batting form under control.
However, he struggled, going 1-for-11 in three games. In particular, he repeatedly threw cold water on the team’s mood by hitting back-to-back singles in the 17th game.
Before the game, Lotte manager Larry Sutton emphasized “process over result” when asked about Han Dong-hee’s impatience. She explained that she is focusing on her batting approach, keeping it as simple as possible and utilizing her newly refined lineup. In particular, she said, “I’m not following the opponent’s pitch, I’m hitting my own pitches. The direction is right. I’m hitting hard pitches toward third base,” he emphasized.
Sutton’s faith paid off. Han went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs in the win.
Jun-woo Jeon, who went 4-for-4 토토사이트 the day before, opened the scoring. In the first inning, he hit a leadoff solo shot against SSG starter Elias.
In the second inning, Yoon Dong-hee doubled, Yoo Kang-nam singled, and SSG second baseman Ahn Sang-hyun made an error. However, with runners on second and third, Kim Min-seok and Go Seung-min struck out in succession to end the inning.
In the top of the third, Han finally broke through. With runners on first and second, she hit a two-run double off the left-center field fence. Lotte was only able to score one run this time.
In the top of the fifth, with two on and one out, Han again singled to left, and Yoon Dong-hee followed with an RBI double to right-center to give Lotte its fourth run.
The Lotte bats exploded in the top of the sixth inning against second starter Seung-gun Baek.
Leadoff hitter Kim Min-seok doubled down the right field line, followed by Go Seung-min’s bunt, and Baek Seung-gun made a throwing error at first base. It was SSG’s third error of the day, allowing Kim Min-seok to cross the plate.
Ahn Chi-hong followed with an RBI single, Rex’s single off the second baseman’s glove, and Han Dong-hee’s sacrifice fly to right field to extend the lead to 7-0.
With multiple multi-hit performances from Yoon Dong-hee (3 hits), Jeon Jun-woo, An Chi-hong, and Han Dong-hee (2 hits), it was a game that quenched the batting thirst of Lotte fans.
Barnes, who was pulled early after giving up three runs in 3⅓ innings in the previous game against Hanwha, pitched seven innings of five-hit, two-strikeout ball to earn his fourth win of the season.
He worked through several scares, including runners on first and second in the second, first and second in the third, and second and third in the fifth. When he got Heredia to ground out to second to end the fifth inning, he pumped his fist in an uncharacteristically calm manner. Three-run sixth and seventh innings.
Lotte briefly relived the previous day’s nightmare in the eighth inning, when SSG Kim Chan-hyung singled to center field and gave up a two-out RBI double to pinch-hitter Jeon Eui-san. But Kim Sang-soo stemmed the tide and roared back.
In the ninth inning, Koo Seung-min, who had been struggling, giving up runs in three of his last four games, came on. Go Seung-min’s throw to first base preserved the win.
