It was a reasonable decision on the brink of a 9-game winning streak. And it went as intended. However, the desired result was not achieved.

Hanwha suffered a 3-5 comeback loss against the Lotte Giants in the Korean baseball regular season game held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 24th. With this defeat, Hanwha's winning streak stopped at '8'.

At the moment they were crossing the seven hills of a 9-game winning streak, Hanwha faced a comeback loss. Hanwha was not just going for a simple 9-game winning streak but was also challenging the historic record of a starting 9-game winning streak. They were in a situation where they had already set the club record. There was interest in whether more new records could follow.

Expectations were high. Hanwha's mainstay Ryu Hyun-jin took the mound. The opponent was Park Se-woong, who had struggled against Hanwha for nearly three years. As expected, Hanwha's batting line capitalized on a shaky Park Se-woong in the 2nd inning, scoring 3 runs first. After getting a bases-loaded opportunity with no outs, it seemed like the chance was going to waste as there were two outs, but a hit by 10% hitter Shim Woo-jun at third base allowed them to score first. Then, Ahn Chi-hong, with a batting average of .065, hit a two-RBI single to secure a 3-0 lead.

Ryu Hyun-jin allowed a solo home run to Yoon Dong-hee in the 4th inning, but his pitching was perfect. He dominated the Lotte batting line. However, it was concerning that Hanwha's batting line failed to score additional runs after the 3 runs in the 2nd inning. Since they had opportunities, they had to prepare for a potential turning point in the game.

Eventually, the 6th inning came as a turning point. Hanwha could not take down Park Se-woong, who allowed 3 runs in 6 innings, yielding a quality start. Park Se-woong displayed fighting spirit with 108 pitches, and the speed of his last pitch reached 148 km/h.

In the bottom of the 6th inning, Ryu Hyun-jin allowed a rolling single to right field from lead-off hitter Hwang Seong-bin. He allowed a hit in a favorable count of 1 ball and 2 strikes. He also took control of the count against Yoon Dong-hee with 1 ball and 2 strikes, but again he gave up a single to right field. The atmosphere started to shift.

He calmly handled Go Seung-min's sacrifice bunt, making it 1 out and runners on 2nd and 3rd. First base was open, and Ryu Hyun-jin signaled to the bench. He indicated he would intentionally walk Reyes without facing him. Even if Ryu Hyun-jin hadn’t sent a separate signal, the Hanwha bench likely had the same thought. They sent Reyes to first base with an automatic intentional walk.

Hanwha's decision was reasonable. Reyes had been strong against Ryu Hyun-jin. He was a batter that Ryu Hyun-jin had to feel pressured against based on their matchup history. When Ryu Hyun-jin was with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021, he faced Reyes, then with the Detroit Tigers, and allowed 2 hits in 2 at-bats.

Last year, when Reyes was wearing a Lotte uniform and Ryu Hyun-jin returned to Hanwha, the likelihood of a rematch increased, and they faced each other from the exhibition games. In the exhibition games, Reyes also recorded 2 hits in 3 at-bats against Ryu Hyun-jin. Most of those were strong hits, not weak ones. In the regular season last year, he had 2 hits in 6 at-bats. The confirmed matchup record was 6 hits in 11 at-bats, with an average of .545.

Na Seung-yeop, who was behind Reyes, was the most productive batter in the Lotte lineup this year and had relatively strong numbers against Ryu Hyun-jin with 2 hits in 6 at-bats last year. However, Ryu Hyun-jin struck out Na Seung-yeop twice that day. Na Seung-yeop couldn’t match the timing at all.

After the game, Na Seung-yeop said, "First base was open and I thought I would be skipped because I was a bit weak. Since Ryu Hyun-jin is pitching so well, if the count goes full, I am bound to struggle. So, I was thinking I would swing if it was somewhat close to the first pitch. The pitches were really good, and if the count went full, I felt like I would definitely lose." There was pressure on Na Seung-yeop psychologically. Ryu Hyun-jin had the advantage.

Ryu Hyun-jin threw a 134 km/h changeup on the lower outside corner of the first pitch. Na Seung-yeop swung the bat as he had planned. A playable ball was formed, but the speed was not fast. It headed towards first base. Chae Eun-sung, who was playing defensively near first base, dove but the ball hit above his glove and rolled into the outfield. Seeing the ball rolling towards first base, Ryu Hyun-jin, who was running to cover first base, could only feel a sense of disappointment.

The score was tied at 3-3. After that, they also failed to stop Reyes from advancing to third base, leading to a 1 out, 1st and 3rd also in jeopardy. They managed to get Jeon Jun-woo on a ground ball to shortstop, but they couldn’t stop the runner from scoring at third base. The score was turned around to 4-3, putting Ryu Hyun-jin at risk of losing. Eventually, Hanwha could not turn it back. He ended up as the losing pitcher with 7 hits (1 home run), 1 walk, 7 strikeouts, and 4 runs in 6 innings.

The decision to skip Reyes was reasonable. However, it is worth considering whether Na Seung-yeop's hit was truly unmanageable for Chae Eun-sung. If Chae Eun-sung had managed to handle that hit, it may not have prevented Hwang Seong-bin from scoring from third base, but at least one out could have been added. The score could have become 3-2, and with 2 outs, Ryu Hyun-jin could have potentially changed the momentum.

A positive scenario did not unfold. After the 6th inning, Ryu Hyun-jin's steps towards the dugout were inevitably heavy. For Hanwha, this was a game they could have grabbed with their 9-game winning streak on the line. There was bound to be a great disappointment. Hanwha, having failed to achieve the 9-game winning streak, will now move to Daejeon to play a 3-game series against KT Wiz. Eom Sang-baek will face his former team KT for the first time.

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