The NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization halted the Lotte Giants' five-game winning streak.
On the 3rd, NC achieved a convincing 13-4 victory against the Lotte Giants in the regular season of the '2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League' held at Sajik Stadium in Busan. They avenged the previous day’s (2nd) comeback loss and marked their season record at 11 wins and 18 losses, while Lotte's record stood at 20 wins, 14 losses, and 1 tie after their four-game winning streak was halted. Before the game, NC was tied for second place with Hanwha Eagles, but fell one spot behind as Hanwha did not play.
NC's starting lineup included Kwon Hee-dong (left fielder), Kim Joo-won (shortstop), Park Min-woo (second baseman), Davidson (designated hitter), Son Ah-seop (right fielder), Seo Ho-cheol (first baseman), Kim Hwi-jip (third baseman), Han Seok-hyun (center fielder), and the starting pitcher was Shin Min-hyeok.
Lotte's starting lineup featured Hwang Seong-bin (center fielder), Ko Seung-min (second baseman), RAY (right fielder), Na Seung-yeop (first baseman), Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Jeon Jun-woo (designated hitter), Son Ho-young (third baseman), Yoo Kang-nam (catcher), and Lee Ho-jun (shortstop) as the starting pitcher was Park Jin.
NC took the lead. In the top of the first inning, after one out, Kim Joo-won hit a single to center, and Park Min-woo hit a single to right, creating an opportunity with runners on first and third. Davidson then hit a timely single to right, driving in the first run. Continuing with runners on first and third, Son Ah-seop produced a timely single to left, extending the lead to 2-0. No subsequent hits followed.
In the top of the second inning, NC's lead-off hitter Kim Hwi-jip hit a solo home run to left-center with a 131 km cutter from Lotte's Park Jin at a 1 ball and 1 strike count. This marked his seventh home run of the season, extending the lead to 3-0.
However, Lotte quickly made up for the scoring in the bottom of the second inning. The lead-off hitter Na Seung-yeop walked and, with Yoon Dong-hee's single to right, created an opportunity with no outs and runners on first and second. Jeon Jun-woo then hit a two-RBI triple to right-center, narrowing the gap to 3-2. After that, with no outs and a runner on third, Son Ho-young grounded out to third, but in the subsequent at-bat with one out and a runner on third, Yoo Kang-nam hit a timely single that broke through the infield's defensive shift, tying the game at 3-3.
NC quickly pulled ahead again. In the top of the third inning, the lead-off hitter Kim Joo-won recorded a surprise bunt single. Park Min-woo struck out, but successfully stole second, and with Davidson hitting a fly out to center, there were two outs with a runner on third. After a walk to Son Ah-seop, with two outs and runners on first and third, Kwon Hee-dong hit a timely double to the third baseman, extending the lead.
Lotte succeeded in leveling the game again in the bottom of the fourth inning. In a situation with one out and no runners on base, Yoo Kang-nam, who came to bat, hit a solo home run to left-center off NC's Lee Joon-hyuk, utilizing the first pitch of a 144 km fastball. This was his third home run of the season, tying the game at 4-4.
The balance was broken again by a home run. In the top of the fifth inning, with one out and no runners on base, NC's Davidson hit a solo home run to left that barely cleared the left-field fence, taking advantage of a 147 km fastball from Kim Kang-hyun. The ball's speed was 182.9 km and the launch angle was 18.8 degrees, literally a bullet home run. The score now read 5-4, and the atmosphere of the game started to swing sharply in NC's favor. In the top of the sixth inning, a lead-off single by Kim Hwi-jip and a double to left-center by Kim Hwi-jip created an opportunity with no outs and runners on second and third; then Han Seok-hyun's timely single to right added to their lead. Continuing with no outs and runners on first and third, Kwon Hee-dong secured a timely double to right-center, widening the gap to 8-4. In the top of the seventh inning, after a walk by lead-off hitter Son Ah-seop and a wild pitch by the opposing pitcher, Kim Hwi-jip’s timely single to right made it 9-4. In the top of the eighth inning, pinch hitter Park Geon-woo's double to right-center and Park Min-woo's double to left-center came in succession, adding one more run. The score stood at 10-4, completely sealing the victory.
On this day, NC's starting pitcher Shin Min-hyeok recorded 1⅔ innings, yielding 4 hits, 1 walk, and 3 earned runs, resulting in an early exit. However, Lee Joon-hyuk, who followed, pitched 1⅔ innings yielding 4 hits and 1 earned run, while Son Joo-hwan pitched 2⅔ innings with 2 hits and 1 strikeout, posting no earned runs, effectively covering in the middle.
In terms of batting, Kim Hwi-jip contributed with 3 hits in 4 at-bats (1 home run), 2 RBIs, and 2 runs scored; Han Seok-hyun recorded 2 hits in 3 at-bats with 1 RBI, and Davidson also contributed with 2 hits in 4 at-bats (1 home run), 2 RBIs, and 1 run scored. Kim Joo-won and Park Min-woo also contributed to the team with multi-hit games.
Lotte's starting pitcher Park Jin recorded 3 innings pitched, 7 hits yielded (including 1 home run) and 4 earned runs, leading to his removal. Subsequently, pitchers such as Kim Kang-hyun, Kim Sang-soo, and Park Se-hyun were brought in to finish the game with the bare minimum. In terms of batting, Yoo Kang-nam contributed with 3 hits including a home run and 2 RBIs, but it was not enough to turn the overall game flow around.
[OSEN]