The Kiwoom Heroes, who had their sights set on victory with “homegrown ace” Ahn Woo-jin, were unable to end their losing streak.
Kiwoom fell into a four-game losing streak with a 3-6 defeat in the 11th game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against the LG Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Sunday. With a season record of 41 wins, 3 losses, and 53 draws, Kiwoom clinched its third consecutive rouging series regardless of the outcome of the third game.
The game was tight until the middle of the game. LG starter Lee Jung-yong pitched six innings of three-hit ball with no walks and two strikeouts, but Ahn Woo-jin lived up to the team’s expectations with a pitch worthy of an “ace”. Her final line was six innings, six hits, three walks, five strikeouts, and four runs.
In the end, Ahn took the loss, but he pitched a solid game, not allowing a run until the sixth inning. His fastball was clocked at a whopping 158 km/h. That’s how close he was to perfection.
Ahn shut down the LG bats from the start of the game. He made a strong impression in the first inning with a fastball that reached 157 km/h. Although she allowed runners to reach base in each of the first three innings, she was able to keep the scoreless streak alive by not being rattled by the runs allowed.
After ending the fourth inning with a triple play, Ahn ran into trouble in the fifth inning. The leadoff batter, Park Dong-won, hit a ball that hit the third baseman’s glove and sailed out of the outfield, allowing the pinch runner to reach second base.
However, Ahn Woo-jin induced a grounder to Shin Min-jae after Park Hae-min’s sacrifice bunt with two outs, and Park Dong-won was caught in a rundown and tagged out at third base. The next batter, Hong Chang-ki, hit a grounder to the third baseman and was retired to end the inning without a run.
The bats remained silent as Ahn Woo-jin cruised through the bottom of the sixth inning. Like LG in the top of the fifth, Kiwoom had a chance to put runners on second and third with no outs, but they couldn’t get a single out. Even a single run could have changed the game.
In the end, Ahn couldn’t get past the seventh inning. After back-to-back singles by leadoff hitter Oh Ji-hwan and Moon Bo-kyung, he walked Park Dong-won to load the bases with no outs and gave up a three-run triple to Park Hae-min. The gap between the two teams was now three runs. Ahn Woo-jin was no longer on the mound, and after a pitching change, Jang Jae-young was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out. Ahn Woo-jin’s runs also multiplied.먹튀검증
Kim Woong-bin’s RBI double in the top of the ninth inning saved Kiwoom from a shutout, but shortstop Son Ho-young’s throwing error allowed Kim Tae-jin to come home from second on an infield single by Kim Tae-jin. However, after LG’s Ko Woo-seok came on, Lee Yong-gyu flied out to right field to end the game.
Clinching a win when your ace is on the mound is one way to turn the tide for your team, but Kiwoom was unable to capitalize on the opportunity.