The Korea Baseball Organization's Lotte Giants are performing well in second place, and it cannot be ignored that luck plays a role alongside skill.

The Giants achieved a comeback victory against Hanwha on the 24th after an extended 10-inning game, winning 8-6. They reclaimed second place just a day after losing 2-4 to Hanwha on the 23rd.

Although starting pitcher Tucker Davidson struggled, allowing 6 runs (4 earned) over 5 innings with 8 hits (2 home runs), 1 walk, and 1 hit by pitch while striking out 6, the bullpen, including closer Kim Won-jung and 6 other relievers, combined for 5 innings of scoreless relief.

In the 6th inning, trailing 3-6, Hanwha's offense was interrupted by rain with 1 out and a runner on first base. This incident ultimately had a positive effect for the Giants. After Choi Jae-hun hit a single with one out, Hanwha brought in a pinch runner, Lee Won-seok, in an effort to create momentum for additional runs, but the game was paused for 39 minutes due to rain, which shifted the flow of the match. When the game resumed after the rain stopped, Hanwha did not score any more runs, and the Giants scored 3 runs in the 7th inning against the Hanwha bullpen, drawing closer. Ultimately, Son Ho-young's 2-RBI hit in the 10th inning completed the comeback victory.

Ahead of the game against Hanwha on the 25th, Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyoung commented during a meeting with reporters, 'We won an important game yesterday,' and noted the impact of the rain interruption: 'We were going to make a pitching change, but it started pouring heavily. In hindsight, it may have worked out in our favor. Typically, when a game is interrupted by rain, it's difficult for the defending team, but we were fortunate enough to have a timely pitching change.'

In the 6th inning with 1 out and a runner on first base, the Giants replaced right-handed pitcher Kim Sang-su with left-handed pitcher Song Jae-young. The rain came just at the right moment, allowing the Giants to preserve their pitcher and carry on past the 6th inning, successfully changing the game's momentum in the 7th inning.

Kim Tae-hyoung viewed Son Ho-young's game-winning hit in the 10th inning as partly a product of luck. With 1 out and runners on second and third, Hanwha pitcher Kim Jong-soo threw a fastball that was completely high on the 4th pitch. With a favorable count of 1-2, Kim Jong-soo threw a high fastball as a bait pitch that came into Son Ho-young's hitting range. It was a challenging pitch, but Son Ho-young boldly swung and made the game-winning hit.

Manager Kim Tae-hyoung said of Son Ho-young, 'He doesn’t approach things calmly and tends to leap into action. While he needs to get a feel for the game, he had good timing yesterday. Before the 10th inning at-bat, I told him to trust himself, and he swung away,' he laughed, then added, 'The pitch that was high was slightly lower. Luck came our way. Is it easy for that to become a hit?'

However, it's impossible to overlook the skill of Lotte, which has reached second place without missing such luck. After Charlie Barnes was placed on waivers due to a shoulder injury following the NC game on the 4th, the team has rotated one foreign pitcher in the starting rotation as they brought in replacement Alex Gamboa and has fought for second place. During the 17 games since Barnes' departure, Lotte achieved a record of 10 wins, 5 losses, and 2 ties (win rate .667), ranking second in the league during this period. Manager Kim Tae-hyoung expressed his satisfaction, noting, 'Even with the foreign pitcher gone, we've generally managed to rotate our 5 starters, and Lee Min-seok has been performing well and holding steady.'

Meanwhile, the Giants faced Hanwha's right-handed starter Moon Dong-ju on that day, fielding Jang Du-seong (center fielder), Go Seung-min (second baseman), Víctor Reyes (left fielder), Jeon Ju-woo (designated hitter), Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Na Seung-yeop (first baseman), Son Ho-young (third baseman), Yoo Kang-nam (catcher), and Jeon Min-jae (shortstop) in their lineup. The starting pitcher was right-hander Han Hyun-hee.

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