The Hanwha Eagles concluded the first half of the season with a thrilling walk-off victory. Showing the might of the top-ranked team, they achieved their 29th comeback win of the season.
Hanwha won 3-2 in a home game against the KIA Tigers in the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League held at Hanwha Life Baseball Park in Daejeon on the 10th. Trailing 1-2, they tied the game with a bases-loaded walk from Luis Liberato in the bottom of the ninth against KIA's closer Jeong Hae-young, before completing a dramatic comeback with a walk-off hit from Moon Hyun-bin after a full count battle on the 10th pitch.
Before the game, Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-yeon received a T-bone steak as a gift. Sweeping KIA and extending their winning streak to six games, Hanwha surged to a solo first place with 52 wins, 33 losses, and 2 ties (winning percentage .612). KIA, which suffered its fourth consecutive defeat, finished the first half with 45 wins, 40 losses, and 3 ties (winning percentage .529).
With a tense pitcher's duel between KIA's James Neill and Hanwha's Hwang Jun-seo, the game remained scoreless through the third inning before KIA scored first in the top of the fourth. Lead-off hitter Park Chan-ho hit an infield single and then Oh Seon-woo connected with a hit to left-center, creating a chance with runners on first and third. Although Patrick Wisdom followed with a sacrifice fly to left that brought in a run, the momentum was halted by a double play from Lee Woo-sung.
Then, in the bottom of the fifth, Hanwha got their chance. After Lee Do-yoon hit an infield single out, Choi Jae-hun connected with a right-field hit to create a first and second base opportunity. Shim Woo-jun struck out swinging, but pinch hitter Choi In-ho drew a walk against Neill, creating a two-out, bases loaded situation.
However, a bizarre blunder occurred at this moment. Yu Ro-gyeol, who was substituted in as a pinch runner for Lee Do-yoon, advanced from second to third but while talking with KIA's base coach Kim Jae-geol, KIA catcher Kim Tae-goon unexpectedly threw to third base. As Wisdom caught the ball, he quickly tagged Yu Ro-gyeol, who had lost contact with the base, ending the inning with a pickoff. The momentum of Hanwha's rally was abruptly cut off, and KIA's Neill exited the mound to cheers.
KIA added another run in the top of the seventh to maintain their momentum. After one out, as starting pitcher Hwang Jun-seo left the game, they targeted Hanwha's bullpen. Wisdom led off with a double that hit the right field Monster Wall against new pitcher Yoon San-heum. With two outs and a runner on third after Lee Woo-sung's groundout to second base, Kim Ho-ryeong hit a clutch single up the middle, extending the lead to 2-0.
Hanwha also scored in the bottom of the eighth. Against KIA's ace Jo Sang-woo, Shim Woo-jun hit a fly ball to right, but KIA right fielder Choi Won-jun, perhaps affected by the wind, nervously dove for the catch but failed to secure it. The play was ruled a hit, but it was an error-prone play. Following that, Choi In-ho's hit to right maintained the opportunity with no outs and runners on first and third, and a ground ball to first by Liberato allowed the runner from third to score, making it 1-2.
With one out and runners on first and second, Moon Hyun-bin flew out to left field. However, Roh Si-hwan drew a walk, creating a two-out, first and second base chance. With the potential tying run on base, KIA replaced Jo Sang-woo with closer Jeong Hae-young for a high-stakes matchup. Jeong Hae-young ended the inning by striking out Chae Eun-seong on the seventh pitch, a fastball clocked at 151 km/h. Chae Eun-seong had previously fouled off a 152 km/h fastball on the sixth pitch but swung and missed on the fastball that came down the middle.
However, in the bottom of the ninth, Hanwha broke through against Jeong Hae-young. With Lee Jin-young's single up the middle and Hwang Young-mook's hit to left, they created an opportunity with no outs and runners on first and second, applying pressure on Jeong Hae-young. As Choi Jae-hun came to bat with a 1-1 count, Hanwha manager Kim Kyung-moon used Ha Ju-suk as a pinch hitter. After Ha Ju-suk attempted a sacrifice bunt on the second pitch and missed, he successful bunted on the third pitch, but KIA catcher Kim Tae-goon quickly threw to third base, forcing out the lead runner.
Although the momentum seemed to falter for Hanwha, Shim Woo-jun drew a walk to revive it with one out and the bases loaded. Choi In-ho flew out to foul territory for the third out, but Liberato drew a walk, bringing the score to 2-2. This marked Jeong Hae-young's fourth blown save of the season. Following that, Moon Hyun-bin delivered a walk-off hit, completing an electrifying finish for Hanwha as they recorded their sixth consecutive win. Moon Hyun-bin, with three consecutive foul cuts in a full count, connected with the 10th pitch for a hit to right, marking his second walk-off hit, the first of his career.
Hanwha starter Hwang Jun-seo pitched 6⅓ innings, allowing 3 hits, no walks, striking out 6, and giving up 1 run, marking his first quality start of the season. Despite not receiving run support and missing the win, he delivered an impressive performance. He threw a total of 90 pitches, clocking a top speed of 148 km/h and averaging 144 km/h, throwing forkballs (48 pitches) more frequently than sliders (3 pitches) and curves (1 pitch). With stable control and a reliable forkball as his out pitch, he dominated KIA's batting lineup, signaling a bright future for his entry as a starter in the second half.
KIA starter Neill pitched 6 innings, allowing 3 hits, 3 walks, and striking out 5 without allowing a run, effectively silencing Hanwha's batting lineup, which had averaged 7.8 runs during a five-game winning streak. With a total of 98 pitches, he hit a top speed of 151 km/h, averaging 148 km/h with his two-seam fastballs (24 pitches) and fastballs (15 pitches), mixing in his signature sweeper (34 pitches), changeups (14 pitches), and cutters (11 pitches). However, he lost the chance for his sixth win due to bullpen struggles.
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