The Hanwha Eagles won again. They maintained a tie for first place with their second eight-game winning streak of the season.
Hanwha came from behind to win a home game against the Samsung Lions in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon with a score of 3-1 on the 6th.
Starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin achieved his 4th win of the season with 5 innings pitched, allowing 1 earned run, while striking out 6. The bullpen, consisting of Park Sang-won (1 inning), Kim Beom-soo (⅓ inning), Jung Woo-joo (1⅓ innings), Jo Dong-wook (⅓ inning), and Han Seung-hyuk (1 inning), threw 4 scoreless innings to secure Ryu Hyun-jin's victory.
On the offensive side, Hwang Young-mook made a pivotal aggressive running play in the 5th inning, hitting a double that set up the comeback. In the 6th, he prevented a double play with a full sprint and added an RBI to extend the lead.
In front of a full crowd of 17,000 for the 15th time this season and the 11th consecutive home game in Daejeon, Hanwha achieved its second eight-game winning streak of the season. After completing its first eight-game winning streak from the game against Kiwoom on the 13th of last month to the game against Lotte on the 23rd, the team faced two consecutive losses but started another eight-game winning streak from the game against KT on the 26th.
Hanwha, which has won an impressive 19 out of its last 22 games, has a record of 23 wins and 13 losses, achieving a +10 run differential. The team remained tied for first place with LG, which also won its game against Doosan that day.
Samsung scored first in the top of the 3rd inning. After two outs, Gu Ja-wook was hit by a pitch from Hanwha's starter Ryu Hyun-jin. Following that, Kang Min-ho managed to draw a rare straight walk from Ryu, setting up a chance on first and second base, and Lewin Diaz delivered a timely hit to center field. Ryu Hyun-jin's third pitch was a low curve that was hit for a single.
Hanwha was held scoreless with just 3 scattered hits against Samsung's starter Won Tae-in until the 4th inning, but the team staged a counterattack in the bottom of the 5th. Lead-off hitter Hwang Young-mook struck the first pitch right down the middle from Won Tae-in and sent the ball to right-center field. Although it wasn't a ball that split the gap, Hwang Young-mook boldly slid into second base with a headfirst slide. After hitting a single, he advanced another base to third when Samsung catcher Kang Min-ho committed a passed ball while facing Choi Jae-hoon.
With a series of lightning-fast running plays from Hwang Young-mook giving momentum to Hanwha, Choi Jae-hoon hit a timely single to right field, leveling the score at 1-1. With two outs on third base resulting from a ground ball from Sim Woo-jun and a pop-up from Choi In-ho to right field, Esteban Florial launched a ball that hit the top of the 8-meter-high monster wall in right field. Although Florial hesitated for a moment and did not sprint, the runner from third scored without issue. Hanwha took the lead 2-1.
Hanwha added another run in the bottom of the 6th. Lead-off hitter Noh Si-hwan hit a double to left-center field, then Chae Eun-sung successfully laid down a sacrifice bunt, pushing the runner to third base with one out. After Jin Young's walk led to first and third with one out, Hwang Young-mook hit a ground ball to shortstop. It could have been a 6-4-3 double play, but Samsung's shortstop Lee Jae-hyun caught the ball and stepped towards second base before tossing it. Meanwhile, Hwang Young-mook sprinted to first and made it safely. With Hwang Young-mook's ground ball, Hanwha extended its lead to 3-1.
Hanwha's bullpen protected Ryu Hyun-jin's win. Park Sang-won, who was first to appear in the top of the 6th, held the opposition scoreless for 1 inning allowing 1 hit and 1 walk. In the top of the 7th, Kim Beom-soo recorded 1 walk in ⅓ inning. Rookie Jung Woo-joo performed well in the top of the 8th, closing out 1⅓ innings with 1 walk and no earned runs until there were 2 outs. With one out and a runner on first, Lee Sung-kyu hit a well-placed ball that left fielder Lee Won-seok super-caught at the warning track, helping out Jung Woo-joo. Later, with two outs and one runner on first, left-handed Jo Dong-wook struck out pinch hitter Jeon Byeong-woo with a low slider, letting out a roar.
In the top of the 9th, Han Seung-hyuk stepped in as the closer and allowed one hit to Kim Tae-geun, but managed to close out the inning without allowing any runs, including 1 strikeout, earning his first save of the season. It marked his third career save, coming 2,942 days after his last save on April 16, 2017, against Nexen in Gwangju (⅓ inning, no earned runs). Park Sang-won recorded his 6th hold of the season, Kim Beom-soo his first hold, Jung Woo-joo his third hold, and Jo Dong-wook his second hold.
Hanwha's starter Ryu Hyun-jin earned his 4th win of the season (1 loss) by pitching 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, 3 walks, 1 hit by pitch, and striking out 6 while giving up 1 earned run, lowering his earned run average from the 3.00s (3.05) to the 2.00s (2.91). Despite the most walks he allowed this season with 3 and 1 hit by pitch (4 walks total), his control was shaky. Yet, he held the opposition to just one earned run through 5 innings. He threw a total of 85 pitches, with a top speed of 146 km/h, averaging 143 km/h, including 40 fastballs, 17 cutters, 16 change-ups, and 12 curves.
With his 4th win of the season and his 112th win in the KBO League, Ryu Hyun-jin reached the milestone of 190 career wins, adding 78 wins from his time in Major League Baseball. He is now counting down to his coveted 200th win, needing just 10 more.
Samsung's starter Won Tae-in pitched 6 innings, allowing 7 hits, 1 walk, striking out 3, and giving up 3 earned runs, achieving a quality start but facing loss as he didn't get any run support. He threw a total of 97 pitches, hitting a top speed of 149 km/h, while averaging 147 km/h, focusing primarily on fastballs (50 pitches), along with 15 change-ups, 13 cutters, 11 sliders, and 8 curves. Samsung had been undefeated in the 6 games Won Tae-in started this season, but faced their first loss on this day.
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