The Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Professional Baseball League have succeeded in reaching '40 wins first' for the first time in 33 years since their previous incarnation as Binggrae in 1992. On the same day, they will face the first-place LG Twins, who also reached 40 wins, in a three-game series at home in Daejeon starting on the 13th.

Under the leadership of manager Kim Kyung-moon, Hanwha decorated its home game against the Doosan Bears in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League with a comeback victory of 3-2 on July 12 at Hanwha Life Eagles Park. It marked their 14th one-run victory of the season.

Hanwha, in second place, defeated Doosan in all three games during the week, marking 40 wins and 27 losses (winning percentage .597), maintaining a half-game difference with first-place LG, who won their game against SSG 8-6 (40 wins, 26 losses, 1 tie, winning percentage .606).

Although it is a shared record with LG, reaching 40 wins first is highly significant. This marks Hanwha's 40-win first since 1990 (40 wins, 27 losses, 1 tie, winning percentage .596) and 1992 (40 wins, 21 losses, 1 tie, winning percentage .653), making it the third time in the club’s history. This is also the first time since they changed their name to Hanwha in 1994, after 33 years since the Binggrae era.

Excluding the single-league standard from 1982 to 1988 and the dual leagues from 1999 to 2000, teams that dominate with 40 wins have a postseason entry probability of 100%. Their regular season championship probability is 62.5%, and their chances of winning the Korean Series are 50.0%.

It was a difficult game, but they held firm without collapsing and won. Starting pitcher Eom Sang-baek allowed 2 runs in the first inning but pitched 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, 1 walk, 9 strikeouts, and 2 earned runs, laying the foundation for victory. He threw a total of 90 pitches, with a top speed of 149 km/h and an average fastball speed of 145 km/h (27 pitches), including changeups (33 pitches), curves (17 pitches), two-seam fastballs (11 pitches), and cutters (2 pitches), showcasing aggressive pitching.

The batting lineup also showed concentration. In the first inning, cleanup hitter Roh Si-hwan connected with a sweeping pitch from Doosan's starter Jack Logg for a two-run homer to left field, traveling 115 meters, marking his 12th home run of the season. This homer came after 18 days and 15 games, quickly changing the momentum after they initially fell behind by 2 runs.

The deciding point in the 7th inning came from Lee Won-seok's bat. After Lee Jin-young's double to center field, Kim Tae-yean's sacrifice bunt, and Choi Jae-hun getting hit by a pitch, with two outs and runners on first and second, Lee Won-seok hit a low cutter from Jack Logg into center for a timely hit. Lee Won-seok celebrated his second consecutive game-winning hit, following his first grand slam in the game against Doosan the day before (July 11).

The bullpen, consisting of Park Sang-won (1 inning), Kim Beom-su (0 innings), Ju Hyun-sang (1 inning), Han Seung-hyeok (⅔ inning), and Kim Seo-hyeon (1⅓ innings), combined for 4 scoreless innings to secure the one-run victory. Ju Hyun-sang got his first win of the season, and Han Seung-hyeok achieved his 10th hold. Closer Kim Seo-hyeon came in with two outs and the bases loaded in the 8th inning, managing to get Jake Cave to hit into a ground ball to second base. He then found himself in a jam again in the 9th inning with one out and runners on second and third but struck out Jung Soo-bin and Oh Myung-jin with sliders, concluding the game amid a nail-biting finish, earning his 18th save of the season.

After the game, manager Kim Kyung-moon of Hanwha said, “Eom Sang-baek fulfilled his role and came down. I want to commend Roh Si-hwan, who hit a tying two-run homer in the first inning, and Lee Won-seok, who hit a welcome game-winning hit in the 7th inning.”

Hanwha will hold a three-game series against LG at home in Daejeon starting on the 13th. For the first game on the 13th, Hanwha is set to start left-handed pitcher Hwang Jun-seo, while LG will send out right-handed pitcher Im Chan-kyu.

With a 0.5 game difference between the first and second place teams, this three-game series is being referred to as a 'preview of the Korean Series.' Before the game, manager Kim Kyung-moon responded to related questions during an interview, saying, “That’s not the case. It’s now June. There isn't much difference even among the 5th and 6th places,” and added, “I don’t know if all three games will be played due to the forecast for rain, but I am waiting with the thought of playing good games.”

Roh Si-hwan, who has found a turning point before the three-game series against LG, said, “It’s an important game, but I don’t feel pressure. I will try to win each game just like against other teams. It should be more fun than pressure. We’ve been through half the season, and this is an important three-game series, so the players need to prepare with the mindset to definitely win more.”

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