The Hanwha Eagles have made history. They set an unprecedented record of eight consecutive wins as a starting pitcher.
On the 23rd, Hanwha won 6-4 against the Lotte Giants in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League regular season game held at Sajik Stadium in Busan.
With this, Hanwha has run up eight consecutive wins. Furthermore, on this day, starting pitcher Ryan Weis also recorded a victory with a strong performance, allowing two earned runs over six innings. Continuing their winning streak of eight as a starting pitcher, they broke the club's record. Hanwha marked a season record of 15 wins and 11 losses, while Lotte remained at 13 wins, 12 losses, and 1 draw.
Hanwha's starting lineup consisted of Hwang Young-mook (second baseman), Florial (center fielder), Moon Hyun-bin (designated hitter), Noh Si-hwan (third baseman), Chae Eun-sung (first baseman), Lee Jin-young (left fielder), Lim Jong-chan (right fielder), Lee Jae-won (catcher), and Shim Woo-jun (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Ryan Weis.
Lotte's starting lineup consisted of Hwang Seong-bin (center fielder), Ko Seung-min (second baseman), Jeon Jun-woo (designated hitter), RAY (left fielder), Na Seung-yeop (first baseman), Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Son Ho-young (third baseman), Yoo Kang-nam (catcher), and Jeon Min-jae (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Charlie Barnes.
Hanwha attacked starting pitcher Barnes from the first inning. In the first inning, lead-off batter Hwang Young-mook hit a ground ball to second base, but Ko Seung-min committed a fielding error. Florial's mis-hit right field single created a first and third base opportunity with no outs. Moon Hyun-bin hit a ground ball to first base, and the runner on third, Hwang Young-mook, was thrown out. With one out and runners on first and second, Hanwha continued the momentum. Noh Si-hwan's timely hit to left field opened the scoring, and with the bases loaded after a walk to Chae Eun-sung, Lee Jin-young hit a two-RBI double to right field, making it 3-0.
In the continued attack with one out and runners on second and third, Lim Jong-chan's timely hit to left field added one run, and Yoon Jae-won's sacrifice fly to right field brought another run in, extending the lead to 5-0.
In the second inning, after one out, Florial hit a double to right field to create another opportunity. Moon Hyun-bin was retired on a flyout to left field, resulting in two outs with a runner on second, but Noh Si-hwan's timely hit to left field brought in another run, increasing the margin to 6-0.
Lotte did not give up easily. In the first inning, Hwang Seong-bin, Ko Seung-min, and Jeon Jun-woo all went down on three consecutive strikeouts, but in the second inning, lead-off batter RAY's single to left field and a wild pitch by the opponent created a no-out opportunity with a runner on second, from which Na Seung-yeop's timely hit up the middle allowed them to score one run. Afterwards, Yoon Dong-hee's single to right added to the opportunity with no outs and runners on first and second, but they could not continue the momentum with the subsequent hits.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Lotte's lead-off batter Yoon Dong-hee hit a double that went over the center fielder's head. Although Son Ho-young and Yoo Kang-nam both went down on strikeouts, Jeon Min-jae's timely hit up the middle narrowed the gap to 2-6. Hanwha could not score additional runs, but Weis delivered a superb pitching performance. He went six innings, allowing eight hits and no walks while striking out twelve batters and allowing two earned runs before departing the mound.
However, Lotte did not give up. In the bottom of the seventh, after two outs, they showcased their concentration. With a walk to Jeon Jun-woo and RAY's mis-hit single up the middle, they created a two-out opportunity with runners on first and third. Then Na Seung-yeop's timely double to left-center allowed them to score one run. With two outs and runners on second and third, Yoon Dong-hee hit another timely single to left, but Na Seung-yeop, who was coming home from second, was thrown out, abruptly halting their momentum.
Lotte created another two-out opportunity in the eighth inning with a hit by Jeon Min-jae and Hwang Seong-bin's single to left, but this time, Ko Seung-min could only manage a ground ball to first base, failing to continue the rally.
With a two-run lead and no earned runs or blown saves so far this year, the top closer Kim Seo-hyun came on to the mound, overcoming the crisis with one out and runners on first and second, securing his sixth save of the season.
In this game, Hanwha's offense was led by Florial, who contributed 3 hits and 2 runs from 4 at-bats. Noh Si-hwan also had a strong performance, including the game-winning hit with 2 hits and 2 RBIs from 4 at-bats. Lim Jong-chan also contributed with 2 hits and 1 RBI from 4 at-bats.
Lotte's starter Charlie Barnes suffered the loss, allowing 6 runs over 5 innings while giving up 6 hits, 4 walks, and striking out 3 batters. Yoon Dong-hee and RAY each recorded 3 hits, and Jeon Min-jae continued his hitting streak with a multi-hit game across 16 games, but they were disappointed to have missed several late scoring opportunities.
[OSEN]