Hanwha Eagles' 12-game winning streak has come to an end with three consecutive losses, dampening their momentum. They had an unrealistic winning pace of 23 wins in 26 games over the past month, so it was about time for a setback.

Although three consecutive losses are disappointing, it cannot be seen as a major problem. The real issue is that the struggles of free agent pitcher Eom Sang-baek (29) are lasting longer than expected. If he does not find his rhythm as we approach two months since the season began, he cannot be regarded as a 'slow starter.'

Eom Sang-baek made his start in the home game against Doosan Bears on 15th at Daejeon Hanwha Life Eagles Park, pitching 2 innings with 7 hits allowed (1 home run), 1 walk, 2 strikeouts, and 5 runs, resulting in an early exit. Hanwha lost 2-8, and Eom Sang-baek became the losing pitcher.

The start of the first inning was fine. He fielded Doosan's first batter Jake Cave with a ground ball to second, and after getting Choo Jae-hyun out on a fly ball to right field, he allowed a double to Yang Eui-ji, but struck out Kim Jae-hwan swinging with a change-up, escaping the threat without allowing any runs.

However, in the second inning, after giving up a hit to Yang Seok-hwan with an outside change-up, he issued a straight walk to Oh Myung-jin, putting runners on base. When he threw back-to-back balls on the first two pitches, catcher Lee Jae-won came to the mound, but Eom Sang-baek's control was off. He caught Kang Seung-ho's fly ball to left field, but the outside change-up thrown to Lim Jong-sung resulted in a timely hit that fell in front of center field, tying the game at 1-1. Eom Sang-baek, who induced a ground ball from Jo Soo-hyung, allowed an additional run with a right-field hit from Cave with two outs and runners on first and third. The second pitch was a poorly located fastball.

With Cave's stolen base, the two outs put runners on second and third, and he threw a cutter on the fourth pitch to Choo Jae-hyun, but the batted ball went through the infield. Hanwha's shortstop Lee Do-yoon dove to catch it but could not make the throw. In the meantime, third base runner Jo Soo-hyung scored, giving up another run. Still, thanks to Lee Do-yoon's defense, only one out of two runners scored.

However, in the following situation with two outs and runners on first and third, he allowed a timely hit to Yang Eui-ji, resulting in the fourth run. The second pitch was hit hard by an outside fastball. Although he struck out Kim Jae-hwan swinging to finally end the inning, he threw 32 pitches in the second inning alone, allowing 5 hits and a walk for 4 runs.

He was ultimately pulled after allowing a home run to lead-off hitter Yang Seok-hwan in the third inning. After getting ahead in the count with two strikes, he threw a curveball at 127 km/h, but it was elevated and inside. Yang Seok-hwan did not miss the opportunity, hitting the ball over the left field fence. The distance was 120 meters, marking his fifth home run of the season. It was the sixth home run allowed by Eom Sang-baek this season.

With a total of 51 pitches, he recorded his personal minimum of 2 innings this season. He threw 24 fastballs with a maximum speed of 150 km/h and an average speed of 146 km/h, along with 16 change-ups, 6 cutters, and 5 curves. All of his pitches were so flat that they were hit for hits. Although he allowed only 1 walk, many pitches missed the zone, and those that entered the zone were so obvious that Doosan's batters did not miss them.

By this date, Eom Sang-baek's season performance stood at 8 games (32⅓ innings), with 1 win, 4 losses, an earned run average of 6.68, 28 strikeouts, and a WHIP of 1.82, with a batting average against of .323. In 5 of the 8 games, he did not pitch more than 5 innings, failing to showcase the endurance he had during his time at KT. He had received the highest contract amount among free agent pitchers with a large contract worth up to 7.8 billion won last winter, but such performance is disappointing.

He had not collapsed like this during the three consecutive games, during which he was pulled before the fifth inning. In his fourth game on 18th against NC at Daejeon, he secured his first win with 4 runs over 5 innings, while on 25th against KT (6 innings, 1 run), and on 2nd against KIA in Gwangju (5 innings, 2 runs), he pitched stably. He had been showing signs of gradually finding his rhythm, but on the 9th against Kiwoom in Gocheok, he allowed 4 solo home runs, giving up 4 runs over 3⅔ innings, and in the game against Doosan, he again showed struggles for the second consecutive game.

On that day, although he still threw at a maximum speed of 150 km/h, his velocity had not notably dropped. However, his control was shaky, leading to increased walks and many pitches that were too hittable for batters. His walk rate over the three years from 2022 to 2024 was 2.95, 2.34, and 2.41 walks per 9 innings, but it has increased to 4.45 this year. Furthermore, his pitches per inning rose from 17.3 last year to 19.6 this year. Despite having no runners on base, he only threw from the set position, but in the game against Doosan, he tried a change in his windup by pulling his left leg back during his throws, working to regain his balance.

Hanwha's starting rotation, consisting of Cody Ponce, Ryan Weiss, Ryu Hyun-jin, and Moon Dong-joo, is at a league-best level. It was expected that once Eom Sang-baek found his rhythm, a top-notch starting rotation would be established, but based on the current situation, that seems difficult. Although he is an experienced pitcher, he cannot continue to struggle, but Hanwha, which is in the running for the top spot, does not have the luxury to wait indefinitely. It would be best for Eom Sang-baek to quickly regain his form, but if that does not happen, a period of adjustment may be necessary. The psychological pressure of having moved to a new team with a large free agent contract cannot be overlooked.

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