Professional baseball Hanwha Eagles pitcher Ryan Weiss (27) missed a shutout victory but was pleased with the team's win.
On 11th, Weiss started in a game against the Kiwoom Heroes in the '2025 Shinhan Bank SOL Bank KBO League' held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, recording 8 innings, 1 hit, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts, and a scoreless victory.
In the first inning, Weiss struck out leadoff hitter Song Seung-moon with a strikeout, not a hit, but allowed a hit to Choi Joo-hwan. However, he induced Lee Joo-hyung into a ground ball to first base, eliminating the runner on first base. Weiss allowed Lee Joo-hyung to steal second base but managed to retire Yasiel Puig with a fly out to center field and ended the inning.
In the second inning, Weiss struck out Ruben Cardenas, Kim Tae-jin, and Park Joo-hong. He also struck out Kim Jae-hyun and Jeon Tae-hyun in the third inning. He got Song Seung-moon out with a fly out to center field, marking back-to-back innings of retiring the side. In the fourth inning, with one out, he walked Lee Joo-hyung, but struck out Puig and prevented Lee's stolen base attempt at second.
In the fifth inning, Weiss again created a three-up, three-down inning and also completed the sixth and seventh innings in a tidy manner. In the eighth inning, Weiss struck out leadoff hitter Cardenas and allowed a walk to Park Joo-hong with two outs. However, he retired Kim Dong-hun with a fly out to right field, finishing the inning without major trouble.
Weiss did not attempt a shutout win in the ninth inning with Hanwha leading 8-0 and handed the mound to Kim Jong-soo. He threw 93 pitches, utilizing fastballs (38 pitches), sweepers (36 pitches), curves (16 pitches), and changeups (3 pitches). His maximum fastball speed reached 156 km/h. He recorded a strike percentage of 67.7%, showcasing aggressive pitching.
Hanwha, supported by Weiss's strong performance, achieved a decisive 8-0 victory, extending their winning streak to 12 games. This is their first 12-game winning streak in 12,041 days since the win in the second match of the doubleheader against SSANGBANGWOOL in Cheongju on May 23, 1992.
After the game, Weiss noted in an interview, "I am really happy to have won today. Overall, I am very satisfied with my pitching today. I especially want to thank Lee Jae-won, who caught for me today. He did a great job with the catcher's lead. I think I only rejected one or two signs. I completely trusted the catcher, and as a result, I pitched well today, so I want to credit Lee Jae-won for today’s pitching success."
Having thrown just 93 pitches up until the eighth inning, Weiss could have easily been allowed to pursue a shutout, but the coaching staff decided to make a substitution. Weiss said, "The hitters scored a lot of runs today. In my previous starts, I often pitched over 100 pitches. The manager probably thought that 93 pitches was adequate for today. I agreed with that decision."
Weiss was seen on the broadcast screen asking manager Kim Kyung-moon to allow him to pitch one more inning after the eighth inning's defense. Regarding this, Weiss said, "I need to ask Ryu Hyun-jin, Ponce, Moon Dong-joo, and Eom Sang-baek about this. After finishing my pitching, I got teased for only throwing 93 pitches while other starting pitchers were allowed to pitch one more inning. So, when I asked the manager how to handle it, he just said it was better to stop here," he laughed.
In his second season with Hanwha this year, Weiss is enjoying an atmosphere that he says is vastly different from last year. Weiss said, "The atmosphere of Hanwha this year compared to last year is really different. The clubhouse atmosphere is different, and I can feel the vibe of a successful team at Hanwha. We were always at the bottom, but now we are doing really well. Our baseball is solid in fundamentals, and the harmony of offense, defense, and running is really well executed."
"This is my first experience of going through a 12-game winning streak while playing baseball," Weiss said. "Now, I want to focus on the upcoming game on Tuesday. I don’t feel overly nervous in these games. I enjoy games like this big one with a winning streak at stake. I wasn't particularly anxious today." He added that if the winning streak continues by the time he pitches next, he will be challenged to achieve a 17-game winning streak, saying, "It seems like a distant story for now," while laughing.
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