One step to the new record! Reyes and Seo Geon-chang stood side by side with a timely hit in the fifth inning and finally hit 201 (Changwon Field)
Oct 01, 2024
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Lotte Giants Victor Reyes hit his 201st hit this season. It is a timely hit.
Reyes played as the first designated hitter against the Changwon NC Dinos on the 1st. Lotte manager Kim Tae-hyung, whom I met before the game, said, `I hope we will have more opportunities even if we have just one at-bat. I hope you will focus on hitting and set a record."
The starting pitcher of NC Dinosaurs was a natural enemy who had no hits in five times at bat against Lee Jae-hak and Reyes. His first at-bat in the top of the first inning was a fly ball to right field, and his second at-bat in the top of the third inning was a fly ball to center field. The agile movement of NC center fielder Choi Sung-won also drew sighs from Lotte fans.
However, Reyes' sharp bat shone only on the scoring chance. Lotte finally scored the first run in the top of the fifth inning with starter Aaron Wilkerson pitching scoreless until the fourth inning. Leading hitter Jung Hoon got on base with a double in left-center, and Park Seung-wook also responded with an RBI double on the right-field line.
Ko Seung-min's strikeout dampened the flow at one point, but Lotte had Reyes. Reyes hit Lee Jae-hak's 142km fastball and made the second run with a timely hit to center field, recording his 201st hit.
He has consistently maintained a high batting average of more than 350% this year, and his performance of 15 home runs and 110 RBIs and OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.905 is also spectacular. Lotte played a key role this year along with Son Ho-young and Barnes in the fall baseball fight.
Another medal for Reyes is the all-rounder. From the opening game to the final game of the day, he played in all 144 games, and among them, there are a total of 60 multi-hit games with two or more hits. Reyes needs his 61st multi-hit game to set a new 202 hit record.
lunarfly@sportschosun.com
