Professional baseball team SSG Landers suffered their fifth consecutive defeat.

SSG lost to LG 5-1 on the 18th at Incheon SSG Landers Field. They are currently mired in a slump of five straight losses.

Starting pitcher Park Jong-hun recorded 7 innings, 5 hits allowed (1 home run), 3 walks, 2 hit batsmen, 3 strikeouts, and 4 earned runs (3 unearned). He delivered a strong performance after 713 days of pitching 7 innings, but neither the defense nor the batting lineup supported him.

In particular, Park Jong-hun was hit on the back of his right shoulder by a line drive from Moon Bo-kyung in the second inning. The ball deflected off Park Jong-hun's body and bounced toward the shortstop, who caught it for an out. Everyone was taken aback, but Park Jong-hun, seemingly unfazed, maintained a relaxed smile and continued pitching, saying he was "fine."

However, in the fourth inning, they gave up the first run due to an inexplicable defensive error. Leadoff hitter Moon Seong-joo reached base due to a throwing error by the third baseman. Park Jong-hun recorded two outs by getting Moon Bo-kyung to hit into a ground-ball double play to the second baseman.

After that, he allowed a single to Oh Ji-hwan. With two outs and a runner on first base, he permitted a hit to Park Dong-won in right-center. The runner on first base took off for third base on a hit-and-run play. Unfortunately, the right fielder's throw to the second baseman slightly missed and bounced once, and the second baseman failed to make the catch. The ball headed in the wrong direction, and there was no backup behind it. It rolled past and stopped near the third base foul line. Oh Ji-hwan, who was at third, quickly dashed home to score. The error was recorded as a throwing error by the right fielder.

SSG also had a defensive error in the ninth inning, trailing 5-1.

Manager Lee Seung-yong praised Park Jong-hun's performance before the game on the 19th, noting that he found some meaning even amidst the losing streak. However, he pointed out the disappointing defense and expressed his dissatisfaction.

Manager Lee stated, "The disappointing aspect is that the batting is currently stagnant, and even though it might not be easy to find a turnaround, the defense should have been more solid. I think the concentration might have dropped in those areas. I believe we really need to address that point."

He continued, "I have been talking to the defensive coach continuously. Hitting is hitting, and defense is defense, so I would like the players to have a conversation in a way that keeps them from getting connected," he said, instructing the coaches to emphasize defensive focus to the players.

Moreover, Manager Lee remarked, "The players keep becoming demoralized, and rather than saying it won't work, they need to focus on the positives and do what they can. That aspect is disappointing to me as a manager."

Generally, when players struggle with batting, their defensive concentration may also decline psychologically. Younger players with less experience tend to be more susceptible to this. Manager Lee acknowledged, "That can happen. But they need to overcome it. Opportunities are not continuously available. As a manager, I see the effort they are putting in, and that's why I am giving them chances. I believe they can rise to the occasion, and I will continue to provide opportunities. I am envisioning a degree of opportunities that should be given."

However, if they do not overcome this, even though this is professional baseball, it cannot be a situation where they are just coddled indefinitely. Unless they truly give it their all to secure their position, there is nothing that the manager or coaching staff can do to help," he emphasized.

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