SSG Landers' Han Yoo-seom led the team to victory with a dramatic walk-off hit in the bottom of the 9th inning.
SSG won 5-4 against the LG Twins at Incheon SSG Landers Field on the 24th.
Han Yoo-seom, starting in the 4th spot as the right fielder, recorded 2 hits, 2 RBIs, including the walk-off hit, in 5 at-bats. Han Yoo-seom conveyed that the players committed to winning for their teammate Eredia, who suffered an injury that day.
SSG exchanged leads with LG. After LG scored first in the top of the 3rd inning, SSG overturned the lead 2-1 with consecutive RBIs from Choi Jeong and Han Yoo-seom in the bottom of the 3rd. After LG regained the lead 3-2 with Austin's two-run homer in the top of the 5th, SSG tied the game with a solo homer from Choi Jeong in the bottom of the 5th. SSG regained the lead with a solo homer from Ko Myung-jun in the 6th, but allowed the equalizer at 4-4 due to a defensive error in the 8th.
In the bottom of the 9th, after 1 out, Park Seong-han created a walk-off opportunity with a double down the first baseline. Choi Jeong walked on an automatic intentional walk. Han Yoo-seom's hit looked like a home run, but left fielder Kim Hyun-soo caught it at the fence before dropping it. Pinch runner Oh Tae-gon stepped on home plate for the walk-off victory.
After the game, Han Yoo-seom remarked that he thought it would be a home run. He said, "I didn't feel bad about it, but it didn't go out. I really thought it was going to go out. If I had thought it wasn't going to go out, I would have run the bases all the way right after hitting it. But instead, I was jumping (while looking at the ball) right after hitting it."
With 1 out and a runner on 2nd base, LG chose to pitch to Han Yoo-seom instead of Choi Jeong. Han Yoo-seom said, "I felt quite sorry for not capitalizing on the opportunity yesterday (in the bottom of the 9th) and thought, ‘I definitely have to hit.’ They chose to walk Jeong, and I thought, ‘I absolutely have to hit.’ I think it was a little louder than other opportunities I had."
I somewhat anticipated the intentional walk. Han Yoo-seom noted, "I thought if the count was favorable for the batter, they might either pitch around or give an intentional walk. Today, (Choi Jeong's) result was really good, and I thought they would go after me because my performance was just okay."
This victory was a bit more special for SSG. During the game, captain Kim Gwang-hyun gathered the players for a meeting. Han Yoo-seom shared, "There was a message to win today's game, and Eredia's sister passed away today. Eredia has been filling a void due to an unexpected injury, and being in a foreign country and playing baseball, it's quite sad that such things happen."
There was also talk of holding a moment of silence for mourning if we won. I suggested this to the captain, and Gwang-hyun gathered the players and spoke. He told us we absolutely had to win today," he said.
Eredia, who is from Cuba, lost his sister on this day in Cuba. It is said she had been suffering from chronic illness and her condition worsened recently.
Han Yoo-seom led the victory with a dramatic walk-off hit, and SSG players gathered around the mound for a moment of silence. Eredia, who is recovering from an injury, is currently training with teammates during home games. Before this game, he finished training and returned to his lodging after the game started.
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