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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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| 레이예스 201안타. Photo courtesy = Lotte Giants |
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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Lotte Giants won the final game of the season. Reyes completed the drama with an RBI double that marked his 202nd hit this season with a direct hit to the fence in the final and final at-bat of the season.
The Lotte Giants beat the NC Dinos 5-1 in the final professional baseball game of the 2024 season at Changwon NC Park on the 1st.
Wilkerson's seven scoreless innings, which achieved his 12th win of the season, Reyes' sharp sense of not missing an RBI chance despite pressure for a new 202 hit record, and Ko Seung-min's net shot stood out.
With the victory, Lotte finished the season in seventh place, one game ahead of the Hanwha Eagles (66 wins, 76 losses, 2 draws) with 66 wins, 74 losses and 4 draws in the final performance this year. Regardless of the game, NC, which was ranked ninth, finished the season with 61 wins, 81 losses and two draws.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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On this day, Lotte was in the lineup of Reyes (designated hitter), Hwang Sung-bin (middle fielder), Son Ho-young (third base), Jeon Joon-woo (left fielder), Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Jeong Hoon (first base), Park Seung-wook (striker), Lee Ho-joon (second base), and Information-geun (catcher). The starter is Wilkerson.
NC faced Choi Jung-won (center fielder), Son Ah-seop (designated hitter), Park Min-woo (second base), Davison (first base), Kim Hwi-jip (striker), Seo Ho-cheol (third base), Kim Sung-wook (left fielder), Kim Hyung-joon (catcher), and Park Si-won (right fielder). The first choice is veteran Lee Jae-hak.
It was a fierce pitching battle. The march of zero continued until the fourth inning.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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Jung Hoon and Information-geun of Lotte and Park Min-woo, Kim Hyung-joon and Park Si-won of NC had hits, but they were not linked to the score. In particular, NC swallowed its regret in the bottom of the third inning when second basemen Kim Hyung-joon and Park Si-won, who were runners on first and second bases with no outs, were caught in check one after another.
NC Lee Jae-hak also struck out Son Ho-young, Jeon Joon-woo, and Yoon Dong-hee in the top of the fourth inning to gain momentum. Wilkerson allowed a double to Davison after two outs in the bottom of the fourth, but he cut the follow-up well. Meanwhile, Reyes, who is trying to set a new record for the most hits in a season (201 Seo Geon-chang in 2014), only hit outfield flies in both at-bats in the first and third innings.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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Lotte finally scored the first run in the top of the fifth inning to aim for victory. Leading hitter Jung Hoon got on base with a double, and Park Seung-wook's timely hit on the right field won the first run. He then ran to second base while NC's right fielder fumbled the ball, and two outs later, he homered when Reyes made a timely RBI single to widen the gap to 2-0. Reyes matched Seo with his 201st hit of the season.
Lotte missed the flow to decide the game in the top of the sixth inning by failing to take advantage of the chance to first and second bases with no outs. However, NC Kim Han-byeol's bunt emerged in the top of the seventh inning with no outs and runners on the first and second bases, and he took a breather by connecting it to a double play. Wilkerson finished his role perfectly with seven scoreless innings.
After two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, NC fired Choi Jung-won's first home run against Lotte's must-win group Koo Seung-min, raising the spark of the last counterattack.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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But there was Ko Seungmin in Lotte. After one out in the top of the ninth inning, Park Seung-wook walked to get on base, and Ko Seung-min sealed the game with a two-run shot over the right fence.
Na Seung-yeop then hit a double to the right-center, and Reyes, who appeared as the next batter, made his 202nd hit with an RBI double directly to the left-center fence, entertaining baseball fans who visited the final stage of the season. Reyes enjoyed the joy of a new record by answering the curtain call to the enthusiastic support.
Lotte's closer Kim Won-joong finished the bottom of the ninth inning and won the final game of the 2024 season.
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| photo courtesy of Lotte Giants |
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