It’s a bitter, bitter series.
Hanwha lost 5-7 to the NC Dinos in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League at Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon on April 22. The loss was their second in a row and ended their three-game weekend series early.바카라사이트
Hanwha used foreign pitcher Felix Peña to get its first win of the second half. Peña was an anchor of the starting rotation in the first half, going 7-5 with a 2.83 ERA in 17 games and 98⅔ innings pitched. Games with the ace on the mound were a must-win due to his high winning percentage.
In the first inning, Peña shut down the NC bats with his signature changeup. Despite giving up a solo shot to Jason Martin in the second inning and a two-run double to Park Gun-woo in the sixth, the ace did his job. His final line: 6 innings, 5 hits (1 HR), 2 walks, 7 strikeouts, 3 runs (2 earned). The quality start (3 earned runs or less in the first 6 innings) seemed to set the stage for the win.
Despite Peña’s quality start, Hanwha didn’t get the win. With a 5-4 lead in the top of the ninth inning, Martin gave up a three-run homer with runners on first and third to fall to 5-7.
Hanwha was also swept in its last game (against Daejeon NC on the 21st), going 3-9. They sent out foreign pitcher Ricardo Sanchez in the first game of the second half, but were unable to secure the win.
Sanchez’s performance was particularly painful. He gave up five runs on 10 hits (three homers) in five innings, walking four and striking out three. In his last two games (including the SSG Landers game on the 8th), Sanchez gave up 13 runs (12 earned), which is a far cry from his previous performance. “I think my habits were exposed,” Choi said of the slump, revealing that there are things to work on. Depending on the situation, it could be a long slump.
For Hanwha, the losses were devastating because they took out both of their strongest 1-2 starters, especially since it was NC (4th place) that they needed to beat to move up. They ended the first half on a high note, having climbed out of last place, but started the second half a little sluggishly, leaving them with a bitter taste of defeat.