“My mistake is a big minus for the team. I will work hard to ensure that no mistakes occur in the future.”

Esteban Florial, a foreign player for the Hanwha Eagles in Korea Professional Baseball, started as the No. 2 center fielder in the second game of the season against the Doosan Bears of the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League on the 9th at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, putting up an impressive performance with 2 hits, 2 RBIs, 2 walks, 1 run, and 1 stolen base in 3 at-bats, leading the team to a 5-4 victory and breaking a two-game losing streak.

The start was like a nightmare. In the first inning, after one out, Florial drew a walk after an 8-pitch battle against Doosan's starting pitcher, Colerbin. Then, after Moon Hyun-bin popped out to foul territory at third base, Florial, noticing the catch was made while the ball was in the air, belatedly returned to first base after heading towards second. As Florial turned back just before reaching second base, he attempted a head-first slide with all his might but was disappointingly forced out at first base. It was a bonehead play.

Florial, who struck out swinging in the third inning, finally showed his worth in his third at-bat. With the team trailing 1-3, he capitalized on the first pitch from Colerbin with 2 outs and runners on first and second in the fifth inning, hitting a 2-RBI triple to tie the game. He then contributed to the go-ahead run during Moon Hyun-bin's bunt single.

Florial did not stop there; he hit a single to right field in the seventh inning and stole second base. In the eighth, he displayed his prowess by drawing an automatic four-pitch walk with two outs and runners on second and third.

After the game, Florial said, “I’m so happy that we could win today. While I did well, everyone worked hard for us to achieve victory.” Regarding the situation of the tying triple, he responded, “I didn’t think too much at the plate and just focused on being as aggressive as possible.”

Florial had been the player experiencing the most mental anguish in Hanwha recently. This was due to his poor batting average in the .100 range, coupled with a baffling fielding error made in the outfield the previous day and a bonehead play in the first inning today, which dampened the team's mood.

Florial determined, “I think my mistakes are a tremendous minus for the team. I want to work hard to minimize my mistakes moving forward.”

Florial, who raised his batting average to .179 with consecutive multi-hit games in the last two contests, is now somewhat acclimated to the pitchers in the KBO League.

Florial stated, “I believe that if I work hard, the results will come eventually. That’s why today’s outcome was good.” He added, “It’s still hard to say that I’ve fully adapted to the Korean pitchers’ pitching. There is definitely a difference in velocity compared to the U.S. But I’m getting better gradually, and I want to continue to help the team win like today.”

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