"NC's 2nd win home run."
In fact, the player who ended the game was Kim Hyung-joon (23), a "big gun catcher" of the NC Dinos.
Kim Hyung-joon hit a solo shot in the top of the eighth inning when his team was being chased by one point by 4-3 in the second round of the semi-playoff against SSG Landers at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the afternoon of the 23rd. Since then, NC, whose bat has revived, has created a 7-3 score with Son Ah-seop and Park Gun-woo each adding one RBI.
Nevertheless, Kim Hyung-joon sighed with relief first, saying, "Thank God." What happened to him
After winning the game, Kim Hyung-joon looked back on the game at a press conference, saying, "I'm glad I hit a home run," adding, "I poured cold water on the team." What is the reason for self-reflection when the team led the team to victory.
The first and second bases are on the first and second bases with no outs in the top of the fifth inning with NC leading 4-2. Kim Hyung-joon took the batter's box. It was a great chance for Kwon Hee-dong and Seo Ho-chul, who were ahead of him, to both get on base due to opponent errors and score additional points.
In order to run away with even one more point, Kim Hyung-joon bunted against SSG pitcher Moon Seung-won, which exactly fell in front of Moon Seung-won. Moon Seung-won immediately picked up the ball and threw it to third base to catch Kwon Hee-dong, who was running at second base, and even caught Kim Hyung-joon, who was running to first base.
Kim Hyung-joon lost his chance due to a bunt failure when he needed one point. Kim Hyung-joon smiled bitterly, saying, "I threw a bunt, but I failed," adding, "I poured cold water on the team."
However, Kim Hyung-joon eventually hit a shot when the team needed the most points. Kim Hyung-joon, who came out as the leadoff hitter in the top of the eighth inning when NC was narrowly leading 4-3, fired a 125m left-hand solo shot after a persistent match with Moon Seung-won.
For this reason, Kim Hyung-joon was relieved, saying, "I'm glad I hit a home run." Kim Hyung-joon recalled the time of the home run, saying, "It's a full count situation, so I was going to hit a ball similar to the ball I thought, but I think I got hit."
With this home run, Kim Hyung-joon hit three home runs in three post-season games. He previously hit two home runs in the wild card game against the Doosan Bears. In response, Kim Hyung-joon rejoiced, saying, "It's good to hit three home runs in important fall baseball."
Park Kun-woo, a senior member of the same team, also praised his performance. Park Gun-woo said, "When I decided to hit SSG Moon Seung-won's change-up, I got a flyout, but Hyung-joon passed it," adding, "I felt that the class was different."
In the meantime, Park Kun-woo applauded, saying, "Hyung-joon will also grow more if he goes to the Korean Series," adding, "After being discharged, it was different." Kim Hyung-joon also responded, "Young players like me listen to their seniors and follow them," adding, "Young players seem to listen to their brothers and play confidently."
However, Kim Hyung-joon, who wore a catcher's mask, had a disappointing scene. SSG Han Yu-seom has given up two consecutive home runs. NC, which had a 4-0 lead from the beginning of the game, was chased by SSG with these two home runs.
Kim Hyung-joon looked back, saying, "I'm sorry that I couldn't catch the early count quickly." "I think the hit came out because the batter was in an advantageous situation," he said. "The pitcher threw to catch a strike, but he should have caught the count well in the beginning."
For him, the experience of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games has been a great nourishment. Kim Hyung-joon performed better than expected in the competition to the extent that the evaluation that "catcher is a vulnerable position" was overshadowed. As a result, he was able to win the gold medal in the competition.
Kim Hyung-joon said, "The balance was broken a lot during Hangzhou, but I tried to balance it when I came back to the team," but remembered, "When I played a national match in Hangzhou, I felt less nervous than the tension I felt at that time." "The experience at that time is helping me a lot," he said with a proud look.
NC and Kim Hyung-joon, who won two consecutive away games in Incheon in a good mood, will now move to NC Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. There is only one win left before NC, which is in fourth place in the final standings of the season and is playing all postseason games from the wild card game, heads to the playoffs.
