The word “horrible” comes to mind. Strangely enough, none of the chances came through. Samsung’s batters against Doosan’s pitchers were so bad that scoring even three runs seems like a small price to pay. Even the defense was shaky.

Samsung lost the final game of a three-game midweek series against Doosan in the 2023 KBO League regular season at Jamsil Stadium on Friday, 3-4, with a walk-off hit in the bottom of the 11th inning.

It was a midweek series. They lost the first game 5-7 on the 23rd and won the second game 6-1 the day before. They came back from 0-0 to score six runs in the top of the eighth inning. We were down and looking for a win. It was a possibility, but the baseball didn’t go their way.

Baek Jeong-hyun pitched a perfect game. He pitched eight innings of six-hit ball with two walks, three strikeouts, and two earned runs for a Quality Start Plus (QS+). It was his second eight-inning game since April 18 against Gochuk Kiwoom.

His pitches came alive. He didn’t make any mistakes, but he didn’t get the win. It was due to the silence of the batting lineup. I was pretty active. I froze with runners in scoring position. Home was far away. The defense support was also disappointing.

Samsung’s Kim Young-woong looks at the ball after batting at first and second base in the ninth inning of the 2023 KBO League game against Doosan at Jamsil Stadium on May 25. May 25, 2023 Photo | Jamsil = Seung-seop Choi thunder@sportsseoul.com

On the day, Samsung had chances in the second through fourth innings, the sixth through seventh innings, and the ninth through 11th innings. There was not a single hit in the game. In total, they went 13 at-bats without a hit. They left a whopping nine on base. It was scary in other ways.

They scored three runs in the top of the second inning when Kim Tae-gun singled with runners on first and third to bring home a run, and in the top of the sixth inning when Oh Jae-il hit a two-run double off the right-center field fence. In the top of the 10th inning, with runners on first and third, Jose Pirela hit a sacrifice fly to score the third run.

A run doesn’t always have to come from a hit, but when the bases are loaded, there’s nothing more valuable than a hit that brings a runner home with runners on second and third. Scoring a lot of runs is the path to victory.

There was actually some good news. Oh Jae-il exploded for three hits먹튀검증, including a double. The captain is back. Kang Min-ho also had two hits, and Jose Pirela had one hit and one RBI. In total, they had nine hits.

It’s hard to play when you have so many chances that go for naught. Three runs is acceptable. With a bat like this, it’s always going to be difficult.

Samsung’s Lee Tae-hoon. Photo courtesy of Samsung Lions

The defense was not good either. It looked like a ‘warp’ collapse. It started in the third inning. With one out, Yang Seok-hwan hit a ball toward third base. Third baseman Gong Min-kyu got his glove on it but couldn’t catch it. A two-run double. It was so close to an error that manager Park Jin-man took Gong Min-kyu out of the field in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Two errors in the 11th inning. They directly contributed to the loss. The first batter, Kim Jae-hwan, hit a ball toward the second baseman. It was sharp, but it was in front of him and he was able to handle it. The second baseman, Kim Dong-jin, flicked it backwards. He was in an awkward position and failed to make the catch. An error.

With runners at first and second, Jang Seung-hyun induced an infield popup. It fell in foul territory at first base. Substitute first baseman Lee Tae-hoon got to the ball. However, he failed to catch the falling ball and couldn’t catch it. Another error.

Jang Seung-hyun walked to load the bases. Kim Jae-ho followed with the final out. In the bottom of the 11th, Hong Jung-woo took the loss after pitching 0.2 innings of 1-run ball.

Neither the offense nor the defense worked. It’s unfortunate that the mound couldn’t protect the one-run lead in the 10th inning, but the offense and defense were the bigger problems. First and foremost, if you don’t have offense, you’re never going to win. The most you can hope for is a draw. It was a shocking loss in many ways. We can’t afford to play like this in defense.