Seoul: It was in late 2022 that Chae Eun-seong left the LG Twins, the only Korea Baseball Organization club he'd played for in his nine-year career, to sign with the Hanwha Eagles as a free agent. Enough time has passed that Chae, now captain of the Eagles, no longer has any special feeling when he takes on his former team. But one thing has remained constant.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Chae expressed his determination to defeat his former team after hitting a go-ahead, two-run homer in the top of the 11th inning, leading the Eagles to a 6-5 victory over the Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. "Obviously, the Twins are a powerful team and we've been clawing our way up the standings," Chae stated. "And right now, whenever we face that team, I really don't want to lose."
The Twins, who had won the first seven games of this season, currently hold the first place in the standings with a record of 34-19-1. The Eagles, on the other hand, have climbed from last place to second place, boasting a record of 32-22-0, 2 1/2 games behind the Twins, thanks to their impressive eight-game and 12-game winning streaks.
The ongoing three-game series between these two teams is the most intriguing matchup of the week. The Twins took the series opener on Tuesday with a 2-1 win, led by an excellent performance from starter Im Chan-kyu. However, the Eagles responded with their thrilling win on Wednesday, narrowly escaping a two-out, bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the 11th.
Chae remarked on the importance of the series, saying, "I felt this was going to be the most important series of the season for us. We didn't put up much of a fight yesterday. If we'd lost again today, it would have really dragged us down. I am happy that we pulled out this win."
In the top of the 11th, with a runner on base and two outs, Chae faced sidearm reliever Park Myung-geun, who had held him hitless in six previous at-bats. "Since it was going to be our final inning anyway and there were two outs, I was hoping to hit something big," Chae said, referring to the new rule that declares ties after 11 innings. "Fortunately, I was able to come through."
The Eagles might have avoided extra innings if their infield defense had been more precise in the seventh inning. A botched rundown resulted in a double steal for the Twins, followed by Park Hae-min's two-run single, which tied the game at 4-4.
Chae didn't address the team after the chaotic inning but encouraged his teammates to remain focused. "I said we couldn't do anything about the runs that we'd already given up," he noted. "And I reminded them that we were not trailing in the game and we just have to go out there and score."
The Eagles' rise in the standings has been largely driven by their strong pitching, though their offense has been lackluster. Chae himself has only six home runs in 54 games this season, after hitting 20 or more in each of the past two seasons. "It'd be great if we could score 20 runs a game," Chae said with a smile. "I think we all feel some pressure to perform better at the plate, but we don't want to be too passive. Drawing walks wouldn't be a bad thing but we want to be up there swinging hard. We will start producing sooner or later."