KT Wiz showed concentration and won a come-from-behind victory. Mel Rojas Jr. is the main player of the 11th inning’s upset hit.안전놀이터
KT won the game 8-5 against the Samsung Lions at Daegu Samsung Lions Park on the 21st thanks to Rojas’ timely hit in the top of the 11th inning of overtime.
On the day, KT had the upper hand by garnering the first run from the first inning. It then led the game by garnering two runs in the third inning. Kang Baek-ho’s RBI ground ball in the seventh inning made it 5-1, which seemed to easily win.
However, he was shaken by Samsung’s decision. In the bottom of the eighth inning, he got a timely hit by David McKinnon, and allowed Kim Young-woong to score a tying three-run single.
In an instant, the flow went to Samsung.
KT managed to block Samsung’s offense by banking on its solid bullpen. Then, he laughed in the 11th inning. With no out and runners on the second base, which was made by Chun Sung-ho’s walk and stolen base, Rojas hit a timely hit. Coincidentally, he made Kim Jae-yoon, KT’s closing pitcher until last year, cry.
Since then, he added two more points to seal the victory as an infield error came out.
After the game, Rojas said, “At first, I focused on the advance base as Chun Sung-ho got on base. I tried to send him to the second or third base somehow. However, after that, I became a situation where I stole second base, and even then, I focused on the idea of allowing the runner to advance to the third base or enter the home base. Eventually, I could have had a hit, and it turned out to be a better result.”
Rojas is serving as the first hitter. Before the game, coach Lee Kang-chul said, “Rojas is not bad. He has the best on-base percentage, and he has to keep going because he wins.”
As the coach said, he is showing good performance as the first player. He has a batting average of 0.450 with four RBIs and three walks.
“The best thing for a first hitter is getting on base. I’m focusing on getting on base. That doesn’t mean I don’t swing passively,” Rojas said. “I’m focusing on getting on base and getting on base and hitting depending on the situation. I’m trying to connect him because Kang Baek-ho, who is in the center of the lineup, has enough records to win the MVP award.”