Doosan Bears right-hander Hong Gun-hee (32) pitched 1⅔ innings of scoreless relief with one strikeout and no walks to earn the win in the 13th game of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League against the Lotte Giants at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on Friday.
Hong took the mound after starter Choi Won-jun in the top of the fifth inning with the score tied 3-3 and the bases loaded. He got the first batter, Hwang Sung-bin, to ground out to second base and Ko Seung-min to fly out to shortstop to end the inning. It was a moment that capped off the success of Lee Seung-yeop’s early bullpen.
Hong took the mound in the top of the sixth inning, still tied 3-3, and worked a clean, three-hit shutout inning against Lotte’s solid center field of Son Ho-young, Victor Reyes, and Na Seung-yup. He got Son to fly out to center, Reyes to ground out to shortstop, and Na Seung-yup to ground out to second.
With his duties complete, Hong gave way to Kim Kang-ryul in the top of the seventh inning with the score 4-3, giving Doosan its fourth win of the season and first in 50 days since June 26 against the Hanwha Eagles in Daejeon. It was a valuable save that helped the team escape a two-game losing streak.
After the game,
Hong said, “In a tense situation, (Choi) Won-jun came to the mound with the bases loaded. I was just thinking about how to prevent the runner from scoring, and fortunately, it turned out to be a good result,” said Hong after the game.
Dubbed Doosan’s “trade bomb,” Hong exercised his free agency rights for the first time in his career after the 2023 season and signed a 2+2-year, 2.45 billion won contract with his former team in late January.
Hong’s first season in free agency didn’t start on time, as he suffered an unexpected injury in spring training. 파워볼실시간 He briefly lost the closer’s job to Jeong Chul-won in the meantime, but on April 11, he joined the first team and announced his return to the closer’s role with his usual quickness and grace out of the back door.
Hong Gun-hee’s May was brilliant. From the Jamsil Samsung Lions on April 2 to the Gwangju Kia Tigers on April 24, he appeared in 12 games, posting eight saves and a 1.59 ERA. In his 11⅓ innings of work, he allowed just two earned runs on zero hits. Riding on the back of their in-form closer, Doosan went 16-2 in May, topping the monthly win column.
But the joy was short-lived in June,
As a string of blown saves and runs led to a mid-June relinquishment of the closer’s job to 19-year-old rookie Kim Taek-yeon.
“I was frustrated with myself because my results were not good at the beginning of the season. I didn’t like my pitches,” she said, reflecting on the first half of the season. ”However, thanks to the thorough management of the training department, my pitches improved little by little. Now that the season is coming to an end, I’m going to put all my energy into improving the team’s performance,” he said.
“I’m not disappointed to be out of the podium. Hong’s “team-first” mentality is evident in her willingness to contribute to the team’s success in any position.
“Our young pitchers are doing a great job,” Hong said. I’m very proud to be a senior member of the pitching staff alongside (Kim) Kang-ryul,” Hong said, adding, ”I will continue to play my role as a senior so that we can continue the current atmosphere.”