Last-Place Kiwoom Finds Success Against Hanwha and SSG, Eyes Turnaround

The Kiwoom Heroes, currently at the bottom of the KBO League, have shown a unique strength against the Hanwha Eagles.
Kiwoom secured a 4-2 victory against Hanwha in Daejeon yesterday (July 18), led by a strong pitching performance from ace An Woo-jin. With this win, Kiwoom has achieved a three-game winning streak against Hanwha since the start of the second half of the season.
Kiwoom, which would become the first team to finish in last place for four consecutive years since the 10-team system was established if they remain in 10th place this year, is making every effort to escape the bottom of the standings in the second half.
With their recent three-game winning streak, Kiwoom has closed the gap with the 9th-place SSG Landers to 1.5 games.
This season, the only two teams against which Kiwoom holds a winning record are Hanwha (7 wins, 4 losses) and SSG (5 wins, 4 losses).
They are at a significant disadvantage against other teams, with 0 wins and 9 losses against the KIA Tigers, 2 wins, 8 losses, and 1 draw against the kt wiz, and 2 wins and 7 losses against the Lotte Giants.
In a sense, they are taking out their frustrations from those losses on Hanwha.
At the forefront of Kiwoom's "Eagle hunting" has been the perfect harmony between the team's core pitchers and hitters.
On the mound, the starting rotation has shined.
Foreign pitcher Raul Alcantara has anchored the rotation in his 3 starts against Hanwha, recording 2 wins, no losses, and a 3.93 ERA. Ace An Woo-jin has also suppressed the Hanwha lineup, pitching 17 innings across 3 games with a 3.18 ERA and 17 strikeouts.
In the bullpen, Park Jung-hyun has played the role of a reliable closer, delivering stingy pitching with 1 win, 2 holds, and a 0.84 ERA over 5 appearances (10 2/3 innings).
In the batting lineup, recent transfer Matt Davidson has been absolutely dominant.
Davidson bombarded the Hanwha pitching staff during these 3 games, batting .615 (8 hits in 13 at-bats) with 1 home run and 6 RBIs, while posting a phenomenal 1.000 slugging percentage and a 1.643 OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage).
It is an interesting detail that before his transfer to Kiwoom, Davidson struggled against Hanwha while with the NC Dinos, batting just .207 over 8 games.
In addition, Keston Hiura contributed to the firepower with a .360 batting average, 1 home run, and 6 RBIs, while veteran An Chi-hong (batting average .323) and Seo Geon-chang (8 RBIs) also acted as clutch performers whenever opportunities arose, leading the team to victory.
On the other hand, for Hanwha, which is in a rush to climb the standings, the three-game losing streak against Kiwoom is a significant blow.
Hanwha, currently in 6th place, has seen the gap with the 5th-place Doosan Bears widen to 3.5 games.
While Hanwha has been strong against SSG this year with 9 wins and 2 losses, they have accumulated losses against Kiwoom, the Samsung Lions (2 wins, 6 losses, 1 draw), and the NC Dinos (3 wins, 7 losses).
(Photo: Courtesy of Kiwoom Heroes, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.