"I believe in you"...A word from the foreign ace who woke up the swaying eagle corps
"I believe in you"...A word from the foreign ace who woke up the swaying eagle corps
Blog Article
The Hanwha Eagles, led by head coach Kim Kyung-moon, beat the Kia Tigers of Lee Bum-ho 7-2 at the home game of the 2025 professional baseball KBO League held at Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon on Sunday. Having escaped from four consecutive losses, the Hanwha Eagles recorded two wins and four losses, providing an opportunity for the team to rebound. Notably, the results were all the more meaningful as they were made at the first regular league game at Hanwha Life Ballpark.메이저놀이터
Ponce's performance as a starting pitcher was stellar. He allowed seven hits, one homer, one four outs, eight strikeouts, and two runs in seven innings to secure the victory.
He displayed good pitching. He threw a total of 105 pitches, and used fastballs (49 pitches), curves (26 pitches), change-up (16 pitches), two-seam (6 pitches), slider (6 pitches), and cutter (2 pitches) evenly. The maximum speed of fastballs was measured up to 156 kilometers.
After the game, Ponce smiled brightly and said, "It's an honor to be able to throw in the opening game at my home, and I'm really happy that I became the winning pitcher in my first official game at a new stadium. It's the strength of my teammates who all wanted to win in unison."
Notably, Ponce awakened Hanwha's players, who were still shaky even though they were foreign players. He called the players together after the fifth inning and fired up their determination. "I told the fielders, 'I trust you guys. If we score just one point, we can make it work out, so let's cheer up.'" Was it because he felt Ponce's sincerity? After losing 0-2, Hanwha scored five points and two points in the bottom of the seventh and eighth innings, respectively, and managed to secure a precious victory.
Finally, Ponce said, "(The fielders) gave me a lot of points after the last inning, so I was able to become a winning pitcher," adding, "More than anything, it was a game that confirmed the huge passion of Hanwha fans. Our fans have a lot of energy. I will do my best on the mound to receive this roar in the future."
Manager Kim Kyung-moon said, "We were all in a difficult situation as our team is losing consecutive games. I'm sure you were nervous because it was the opening game at the new stadium, but I was able to overcome the cold and tension with the cheering and shouting of the fans who filled the stadium," adding, "Thank you again to the fans. I want to say thank you to all the players." Hanwha aims to win its second consecutive title on Monday, with right-hander Ryan Weiss as its team's starter. Against this backdrop, KIA will likely have left-hander Yang Hyeon-jong.