Professional baseball player Park Se-woong of the Lotte Giants left a disappointing impression, not living up to the expectations of a homegrown ace. Struggling against the lower-tier batting lineup, he could not complete six innings, contributing to the team's defeat. He could not properly set up a celebration for the captain's 2,000-hit milestone.

On the 4th, Park Se-woong started the game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Sajik Stadium in Busan, pitching 5⅓ innings and throwing 114 pitches, allowing 6 hits, 5 walks, and recording 7 strikeouts while giving up 5 runs, unable to prevent the team's 6-9 loss.

As a result, Park Se-woong was on an 8-game winning streak as a starter after the opening game loss against LG on March 23, leading in wins. It seemed he was becoming a true homegrown ace. However, a worrying trend began with the game against Samsung on May 17. Since then, Park Se-woong has struggled, remaining with 3 losses over 4 games. He has managed to pitch over 5 innings each time, but the content and process have not been good.

That day, Park Se-woong's pitching left much to be desired. There was a clear indication that his control was off. Most notably, he struggled in matchups against the lower batting order. In particular, he gave 3 walks to No. 8 batter Eo Jun-seo, creating his own crises. Eo Jun-seo, a rookie this season, had a batting average of .242, with 1 home run, 7 RBIs, and an OPS of .554 before the game. He had only received 3 walks this season. Given Park Se-woong's status and ability, he should have overwhelmed him.

However, Park Se-woong conceded 3 walks just to Eo Jun-seo that day. In the 2nd inning with 2 outs and runners on 2nd base, he struggled in a full count battle of 8 pitches with Eo Jun-seo, giving up a walk and creating a crisis with 2 outs on 1st and 2nd base. He struck out Park Joo-hong, but barely managed to do so after an 11-pitch battle.

In the 4th inning, leading 2-0, he could not dominate Eo Jun-seo with 1 out and runners on 1st and 3rd base. Ultimately, he allowed another walk to Eo Jun-seo, creating a crisis with 1 out and bases loaded. He struck out Park Joo-hong but had to face the upper batting order, Song Sung-mun, with 2 outs and bases loaded, who hit a bases-clearing triple to turn the game around 2-3.

In the 5th inning, he managed to tie the game at 3-3 and returned to the mound in the 6th. After 1 out, he faced Eo Jun-seo again. Despite having thrown over 100 pitches, he continued to struggle against Eo Jun-seo. After inducing a swing-and-miss on the first pitch, he threw 4 consecutive balls, allowing a walk. He seemed drained, and the results were no different from the previous at-bats. He also allowed another walk to Park Joo-hong, leaving a crisis with 1 out and runners on 1st and 2nd base before handing the ball to Kim Jin-wook. Kim Jin-wook then gave up a 3-run home run to Song Sung-mun. Park Se-woong's runs allowed increased to 5. After that, the Giants made a comeback attempt, but it was not enough. They had prepared a celebration that day. Captain Jeon Jun-woo, who declared 'lifetime Lotte,' was just 2 hits away from the historic 20th 2,000-hit milestone.

Initially, in the 4th inning, he hit a single, completing his 1,999th hit. Then, in the 7th inning, trailing 3-6, he hit a double over the left fielder's head for his milestone 2,000th hit, creating momentum for a comeback. Following that, with no outs and runners on 2nd and 3rd base, he scored 2 runs with a timely hit from Jeon Min-jae and an error from the opponent to narrow the score to 5-6. The pace of the game was so swift that Jeon Jun-woo received a bouquet and was quietly congratulated in the dugout.

Had Park Se-woong dominated the game as a true homegrown ace, the celebration for Jeon Jun-woo's 2,000th hit could have proceeded more leisurely, and the joy would have been greater. However, since Park Se-woong lost his early momentum, such a celebratory atmosphere was a luxury.

Lotte had enjoyed a dominant victory of 8-0 the day before, thanks to Alex Gamboa's perfect 7-inning no-hitter, but the mood quickly turned cold just a day later. The struggles of homegrown ace Park Se-woong felt even more painful.

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