2024-03-24 16:07:12
The Hanwha Eagles won a cold game over the KIA Tigers thanks to a good pitch from ‘monster’ Ryu Hyun-jin, who started the KBO exhibition game, and a final three-run shot from ‘home run king’ Noh Si-hwan.
Hanwha won a 9-1 cold game over KIA in the 2024 KBO League exhibition game held at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon on the 12th.
Hanwha, which has emerged as a dark horse, raised expectations for the season thanks to Ryu Hyun-jin’s excellent pitching from the start in the first exhibition game.
Although it was an exhibition game held during the day on a weekday, 3,500 people visited Daejeon Stadium to watch Ryu Hyun-jin pitch. Daejeon Stadium was the only place where more than 2,000 spectators gathered for the exhibition game that day.
Ryu Hyun-jin made his first appearance in an official domestic game in 4,177 days since the final game of the regular season against Nexen Heroes (now Kiwoom) on October 4, 2012. If we narrow the scope to his exhibition game, it has been 4364 days since the game against the KIA Tigers on March 31, 2012.
Ryu Hyun-jin pitched 4 innings, allowing 3 hits and 1 run, using his unique sharp ball control. Last season’s rookie of the year, Moon Dong-ju, also took the mound as the third pitcher starting in the 6th inning and pitched perfectly with 1 hit, 1 walk, and 1 strikeout in 2 innings.
No. 4 hitter Noh Si-hwan showed off his good batting ability with 2 hits in 3 at-bats (1 home run) and 5 RBIs, including a 3-run home run in the final from his first at-bat.
Ryu Hyun-jin gave up a run in the first inning, perhaps because his body was less warm due to the cold weather. He allowed one run in the top of the first inning with one out, a double to Lee Woo-sung and a timely hit to Kim Do-young.
However, Hanwha’s batting lineup immediately exploded in the bottom of the first inning, scoring 9 runs with 4 hits (including 1 home run) and 7 4-balls, lightening Ryu Hyun-jin’s shoulders. Noh Si-hwan scored 5 RBIs, including a 3-run home run, in the bottom of the first inning alone.
With the batting lineup’s strong scoring support, Ryu Hyun-jin returned to monster mode from the top of the second inning and lasted until the top of the fourth inning without allowing any additional runs. In particular, in the top of the 4th inning, due to an error by the first baseman, there was a scoring situation with 2nd base without an out, but he showed off his power by consecutively shutting out KIA’s main batting lineup, including Socrates Brito, Choi Hyeong-woo, and Kim Sun-bin.
Both teams engaged in a pitching battle from the second inning and were unable to score additional runs. After Ryu Hyun-jin, Hanwha was followed by Han Seung-joo (1 inning, no runs), Moon Dong-ju (2 inning, no runs), and Kim Seo-hyun (2nd inning, no runs).
KIA’s starting pitchers were Jang Min-ki (⅔ innings, 7 runs), Kim Min-ju (1 ⅓ innings, 2 runs), Lee Hyeong-beom (2 innings, no runs), Lee Jun-young (1 inning, no runs), and Jang Hyun-sik (1 inning, no runs).
The game on this day was suddenly stopped due to rain after two outs in the top of the eighth inning, with Hanwha leading 9-1, and when the rain did not subside, the umpire declared a cold game.
Reporter Kim Won-geun Photo News 1
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2024-03-24 16:07:12