Back on top in KBO, Eagles in for another big series
Hanwha Eagles players celebrate after beating the LG Twins 10-5 in their Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon, in this photo provided by the Eagles, June 15. Yonhap
For the first time in about a month, the Hanwha Eagles are back in first place in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), following a huge win over the rival LG Twins on Sunday.
And the Eagles will try to stay there with a series against another contending club, the Lotte Giants, on the horizon this week.
The Eagles, with a record of 41-27-1 (wins-losses-ties), now lead the Twins (40-27-2) by a half game. The Giants (37-30-3) are in third place, trailing the Eagles by 3 1/2 games.
Starting Tuesday, the Giants will host the Eagles for a three-game set at Sajik Baseball Stadium in the southeastern city of Busan. The Giants have gone 4-3-0 in their seven meetings against the Eagles so far this season.
The Giants got a split against the SSG Landers over the weekend after having their game on Friday rained out. The Giants spoiled the retirement ceremony for former Landers captain and Major League Baseball star Choo Shin-soo with a 4-2 win Saturday but lost Sunday's game by 1-0 — their first shutout loss since March 28.
After also having a rainout Friday, the Eagles settled for a 2-2 tie against the Twins on Saturday, when An Chi-hong got thrown out at home trying to score the winning run with two outs in the bottom of the 11th.
Then on Sunday, the Eagles rallied from a 4-0 deficit in a 10-5 victory, with not even a 104-minute rain delay cooling off their offense that pounded out 15 hits. They scored in double figures for only the second time in their past 32 games.
Something will have to give this week. The Giants lead the KBO with a .286 team batting average and 696 hits. The Eagles boast the lowest team ERA at 3.44, and they have given up the fewest hits with 546. Opponents are hitting a league-low .236 against the Eagles.
For the Eagles, Ryan Weiss, after striking out 10 in seven scoreless frames against the Doosan Bears last Tuesday, will be locked and loaded for the series opener.
The Twins will have a relatively soft schedule this week, with a six-game homestand against two of the league's worst teams.
From Tuesday to Thursday, they will host the eighth-place NC Dinos (29-33-4). Then for the Friday-Sunday series, the Twins will face the Doosan Bears (27-39-3), still in ninth place even after a two-game winning streak.
Teams ranked from fourth to seventh are separated by only two games. The KT Wiz (36-31-3) lead the middle class in fourth place, with the Samsung Lions a half game back at 36-32-1. The Landers (34-32-2) and the Kia Tigers (34-33-1) are in the thick of that battle too.
This week, the Tigers will play two of those rivals — the Wiz at home for three games and the Landers on the road for three.