The SSG Landers, the “Home Run Corps,” showed their prowess as a home run corps for the second consecutive day, ending a three-game weekend series with a winning series.메이저놀이터
SSG won its 11th game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against the Doosan Bears 8-5 on Sunday at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul to extend its winning streak to two games. Their season record is 59 wins, 1 tie, and 47 losses.
Having tasted victory the previous day with two home runs (Ha Jae-hoon and Jeon Jeon-san), SSG harassed the Doosan mound with two home runs on this day as well. Leading the way was Ha Jae-hoon. While the previous day he had made a ground home run with a full sprint, this time he made a huge arch.
In the top of the fourth inning, with the score tied 2-2, Jae-hoon stepped up to the plate with two outs and a 2-2 count and lined a six-pitch fastball from Doosan starter Raul Alcantara over the left-center field fence. It was Ha’s fifth home run of the season.
Ha’s concentration was particularly impressive as he didn’t miss a fastball that reached 155 km/h. According to Doosan, the ball traveled a whopping 133.3 meters. His bat speed was 170.5 km/h.
The day before, Jae-hoon had hit his first KBO groundball in the top of the eighth inning with the bases loaded and his team trailing 3-5, when he smashed a long drive to center field off Park Chi-kook. Coincidentally, prior to this game, Ha had been strong in the bullpen this season, going 6-for-12 with a .500 batting average, two home runs and five RBIs in four games, and he was once again firing on all cylinders in a place that holds many fond memories.
There was another man who was strong in the stadium. That would be Choi. Prior to this game, he was 10-for-41 with a .366 batting average, 15 doubles, three home runs and nine RBIs in 41 games in Jamsil this season, and with the score tied at 4-4 in the top of the eighth inning, he pulled a three-pitch fastball from Hong Gun-hee for his 23rd home run of the season over the left field fence.
Although reliever Seo Jin-yong tied the game in the bottom of the ninth with his first blown save of the season, SSG regained the lead in the top of the 10th with an RBI single by Jeon Eui-san, followed by an RBI double by Kim Sung-hyun to seal the win. In the end, the three runs in the top of the 10th inning decided the game, but without the home runs in the middle and late innings, it would have been a close game and a sweep.
Prior to this game, SSG was tied with the KIA Tigers for the lowest team home run total in August with 11. This was partly due to the loss of foreign hitter Guillermo Heredia to injury, but overall, the team was in a cycle. Having gotten their bats going through the series, SSG ended the week on a high note, enjoying both the results and the process. With Heredia returning in time to face the Incheon Kiwoom Heroes on September 29, it will be interesting to see if the SSG batting lineup can rebound in September.