Kiwoom shook off the eagle phobia.
Kiwoom Heroes, led by head coach Seol Jong-jin, won a thrilling 3-2 victory over manager Kim Kyung-moon’s Hanwha Eagles in the 2026 professional baseball KBO League regular season home game at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul on the 13th.
As a result, Kiwoom, which avenged its 5-11 defeat the previous day (12th), recorded 14 wins, 1 draw, and 24 losses. The losing streak against Hanwha, which began in Daejeon on September 15 last year, also ended in 4, and the losing streak against Hanwha in Gocheok also ended in 10. Kiwoom has never won against Hanwha in Gocheok since May 9th last year. Hanwha, which has failed to win four consecutive games, has 17 wins and 21 losses.
사진 확대 Park Jung-hoon won his first start win against Hanwha on the 13th. Photo = Reporter Kim Young-gu 
사진 확대 Lim Byung-wook hit the final hit in the match against Hanwha on the 13th. Photo = Reporter Kim Jae-hyun
Along with pitcher Park Jung-hoon, Kiwoom set up the starting list with Seo Geon-chang (designated hitter), An Chi-hong (second baseman), Choi Joo-hwan (first baseman), Lim Byung-wook (right fielder), Trenton Brooks (left fielder), Park Joo-hong (center fielder), Yang Hyun-jong (third baseman), Kwon Hyuk-bin (striker) and Park Sung-bin (catcher).
In response, Hanwha built the lineup with Hwang Young-mook (second baseman), Jonathan Ferraza (right wing), Moon Hyun-bin (left wing), Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter), Noh Si-hwan (third baseman), Heo In-seo (fosu), Kim Tae-yeon (first baseman), Lee Won-seok (middle fielder) and Shim Woo-jun (striker). The starting pitcher is Wilkel Hernandez.
It was up to Kiwoom to gain the upper hand. In the bottom of the first inning, Lim Byung-wook hit an RBI left-handed timely double with one out and runners on first and third, which led to Seo Geon-chang’s dune and Choi Joo-hwan’s hit to the right. With one out and runners on the second and third bases, Choi Joo-hwan scored while the ball handed to Hernandez by opposing catcher Heo In-seo was missing.
사진 확대 Lim Byung-wook showed off his clutch ability in the match against Hanwha on the 13th. Photo = Reporter Chun Jung-hwan
Kiwoom, which gained momentum, ran away one more step in the bottom of the fourth inning. Seo Geon-chang hit an RBI timely hit to the right with two outs and runners on the first and second bases with Park Joo-hong’s hit to the right and Kim Woong-bin’s hit to the right.
Hanwha steadily sought to counterattack, but failed to score a comeback point due to the poor cohesion of the lineup.
Hanwha, which was silent, started its chase in the top of the eighth inning. Heo In-seo hit a timely RBI left-handed hit with one out and runners on first and second bases made by Kang Baek-ho’s heavy hit and Noh Si-hwan’s left-handed hit. With Lee Jin-young’s strikeout, Lee Won-seok hit a timely RBI single to left-center.
Since then, Hanwha has done its best to score a comeback point in the top of the ninth inning, but no further news has been heard. That’s how Kiwoom ended its precious victory.
사진 확대 Park Jung-hoon picked his first individual starting win in the match against Hanwha on the 13th. Photo = Reporter Kim Jae-hyun
Kiwoom starter Park Jung-hoon threw 101 pitches and allowed three hits, four strikeouts, and four strikeouts in 5.1 innings, earning two wins (1 loss and six holes) of the season. This is the first time Park Jung-hoon has won a starting win. Kim Sung-jin (0.2 scoreless innings), Park Jin-hyung (1 scoreless inning), Won Jong-hyun (0.2 scoreless innings), and Yuto Kanakubo (three, 1.1 scoreless innings) kept the mound, while Lim Byung-wook (2 hits in 4 at-bats, 1 RBI), the main character of the final hit, shone. In addition, Choi Joo-hwan (2 hits in 5 at-bats) and Seo Geon-chang (2 hits in 4 at-bats and 1 RBI) also strongly supported them.
Hanwha was disappointed with the concentration of its batters, who scored only eight hits and two points. Starting pitcher Hernandez (three runs and two earned runs with six hits and two outs in 3.2 innings) has lost three games (three wins) this season.
Meanwhile, at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field, the KIA Tigers defeated the Doosan Bears 9-2. As a result of this day, KIA, which escaped its second consecutive loss, recorded 18 wins, 1 draw, and 20 losses. Doosan, which has failed to win four consecutive games, also has 18 wins, 1 draw and 20 losses.
At KT Wiz Park in Suwon, KT Wiz won 18-4 against SSG Landers. KT, which escaped from two consecutive losses with this victory, recorded 24 wins, 1 draw and 13 losses. SSG has 20 wins, 1 draw and 17 losses.
[Lee Hanjoo, MK Sports Reporter]