Nothing but praise.
The KT Wiz were all smiles after a 5-2 home win over the Kiwoom Heroes in the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on May 25. It was their third straight win.
The starting lineup was Mel Rojas Jr. (left fielder), Cheon Sung-ho (second baseman), Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter), Moon Sang-chul (first baseman), Jang Sung-woo (catcher), Hwang Jae-gyun (third baseman), Bae Jeong-dae (center fielder), Cho Yong-ho (right fielder), and Shin Bon-ki (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Eom Sang-baek.
Shin Bong-ki was the standout. She went 4-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. This is the most hits in a single game by an individual. The previous record was 4-for-5 against the Sasik KIA Tigers on April 17, 2019, when he was a member of the Lotte Giants.
Shin singled to center field with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third inning. In the fifth inning, he singled to right with the bases loaded. In the bottom of the sixth inning, the second baseman hit an RBI single to left center to make the score 4-1. In the bottom of the eighth inning, the second baseman singled up the middle to give the team a 5-2 lead.
Hwang Jae-gyun went 1-for-4 with one home run and one RBI. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the second inning, Hwang took a two-seam, 140-kilometer/h fastball from Kiwoom starter Kim In-beom over the left-field wall. The 110-meter solo home run gave KIUM a 1-0 lead. It was Hwang Jae-gyun's first home run of the season.
Chun Sung-ho was the hero of the final at-bat. In the bottom of the fifth inning, with runners on first and third, he hit an infield single to shortstop. It gave the team a 2-1 lead. He finished the game with one hit and 사설토토 one RBI in four at-bats.
Starting pitcher Uhm Sang-baek made his comeback in this game after 15 days of rest. He pitched five innings, allowing one run (unearned) on four hits with one walk and seven strikeouts. It was his third win of the season (6-1).
He threw 82 pitches (52 for strikes). He mixed his fastball (17) with his changeup (35) and cutter (30). His fastball was topped out at 149 km/h.
Sung Jae-heon and Kim Min-woo each pitched one scoreless inning to secure the hold. After Lee Sang-dong gave up one run in ⅔ of an inning, Son Dong-hyun pitched 1⅓ scoreless innings for the save. Son's save came 364 days after his first since May 27, 2023, against the Daegu Samsung Lions. It was his second career save.
After the game, KT manager Lee Kang-cheol said, “Uhm Sang-baek fulfilled his role as a starter. The bullpen pitchers who came out after him also helped him win the game with minimal runs.”
“In the batting order, Hwang Jae-gyun set the tone for the game with his first home run of the season. Shin Bon-ki had his best performance of the season on offense with four hits, which was crucial to the victory.”
“I would like to thank the players for their hard work and the fans for their passionate support,” he concluded.
