“I hope there is still a chance to go to fall baseball until the last day of the regular season.”
Lotte Giants Jeong Hoon (36) played only a short amount of time this year due to poor performance and injuries. When he belatedly returned to the first team and regained his normal condition, it was at a time when the chances of advancing to fall baseball were decreasing. However, Jeong-Hoon, who returned in mid-August, did not want to give up until the end and desperately looked forward to a glimmer of hope for fall baseball until the end of the regular season.
Jeonghoon desperately ran and ran. In the last 10 games, he was in good batting condition with a batting average of .333, 12 hits in 36 at-bats, 2 RBI, and 7 runs, and he played actively when he went out on the pitch. Although he doesn’t have the base running ability to blow his opponents away, he runs and slides to get one more base each game. A uniform soiled with dirt is a sign of Jung Hoon’s will. The three-game series against SSG held at SSG Landers Field in Incheon from the 22nd to the 24th was a representative example. In these three games, Jeong Hoon reached base six times with 5 hits and 1 walk in 12 at-bats. And he scored 3 points.
In the game on the 4th, he appeared in the top of the 7th inning with one out and no runner on base when he was leading 5-1, and got on base with a walk. After Gudrum’s hit to right-center, he ran to third base without delay. He created a chance with 1 out and runners on 1st and 3rd base. And when Jeong Dae-seon’s shallow fly ball to right field, Jeong Hoon tagged up and scored a 6-1 run. It was Jung Hoon’s fighting spirit that turned a shallow fly ball into a sacrifice fly. Lotte eventually won 8-1.
Jeong Hoon is working hard in every game. He said, “Right now, every at-bat is desperate and desperate. I think that if I do well, my team can win. We are working hard for the team to win. “I am doing my best in batting, defense, and base running,” he said emphatically.
And just like Jung Hoon’s earnest wish, Lotte still has the spark of fall baseball alive. The top four teams of LG KT NC Doosan have not only been ranked, but advancement to the fall baseball season is a foregone conclusion. However, the battle for 5th place is unknown. The final fall baseball ticket fight, which was said to be a two-way match between SSG and KIA.
However, SSG and KIA are falling. Lotte seems to have entered the labyrinth by taking the three-game series against SSG to a winning series with 2 wins and 1 loss. SSG has only 2 wins and 8 losses in 10 games as its key pitchers have been shaken recently. Starting shortstop Park Seong-han and starting center fielder Choi Ji-hoon both left.
KIA recently lost its twin guns. Na Seong-beom suffered a hamstring injury, and recently Choi Hyeong-woo suffered a fractured collarbone after colliding with an opponent while playing base. Everyone is out for the season. Sure-win Choi Ji-man and outfielder Choi Won-jun also joined the national team. The momentum of the 9-game winning streak disappeared and the aftereffects of a 7-game losing streak came. They have only 1 win and 9 losses in the last 10 games.
Last week, Lotte played against Kiwoom (Sajik)-KT (Suwon)-SSG (Incheon) and recorded 2 wins and 3 losses. Although they lost to Kiwoom and KT, they finished the three-game series against SSG with 2 wins and 1 loss. Although there is no explosive upward trend토토사이트, they are not falling behind and are recording 60 wins and 67 losses. There is still a 4.5 game gap with 5th place SSG (64 wins, 62 losses, 2 draws) and a 3.5 game gap with 6th place KIA (61 wins, 61 losses, 2 draws). Lotte has 17 games remaining, SSG has 16 games remaining, and KIA has 20 games remaining, the most. Although it is not realistically easy to catch up, it is still a mathematically possible gap.
Lotte is also currently not at 100% power. Currently, the team’s strength has been greatly weakened due to the absence of Park Se-woong, Na Kyun-an, and Yoon Dong-hee from being called up for the Asian Games, and the absence of certain winning pitchers such as Kim Sang-soo (adductor) and Koo Seung-min (shoulder) due to injury. But we must pursue the last remaining hope.
Lotte will take a three-day break until the 27th and play at the start of the Chuseok holiday on the 28th. Eight games to be played until next week will be played at home. They will have a two-game series against Hanwha on the 28th and 29th and then take a break on the 30th. A four-game series including a double header with Samsung is scheduled from October 1st to 3rd. Afterwards, there will be a two-game series against leader LG on the 4th and 5th. There is no pressure to move, and the opposing teams are relatively comfortable with it. Hanwha and Samsung are both low-ranking teams, and LG, the leader whose magic number count has begun, is also likely to lose its grip on first place next week.
The 36-year-old veteran is throwing himself up and his uniform is getting dirty. Can Jung Hoon’s earnestness and desperation help Lotte maintain its remaining chances of advancing to the fall baseball season? Maybe it really is the last chance.