Pittsburgh Pirates Bae Ji-hwan returned after two days of rest due to an unclear ball decision, but failed to produce a hit.
Bae Ji-hwan started as a second baseman and first hitter in the 2023 Major League Baseball match against the Chicago Cubs held at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, USA on the 20th (Korean time) and recorded no hits in four at-bats.
Bae Ji-hwan, whose hitting and performance were not bad recently, took a break by only appearing as a defensive back against the New York Yankees on the 18th. And because there was no game the day before (19th), he returned to the starting lineup after two consecutive days of recovery, but he failed to produce a hit and was silent. His season batting average dropped from 0.239 to 0.236.
Bae Ji-hwan faced Cubs starter Javier Assad in his first at-bat as the leadoff hitter in the top of the first inning. Bae Ji-hwan threw his bat out for an 89.6 mile (approximately 144.2 km) cutter formed outside the strike zone in 2B-2S, but started the game with a missed swing and a strikeout.
The result of his second at-bat was also disappointing. Bae Ji-hwan filtered out Assad’s 1st to 3rd pitches, which were out of control, and then looked at the 4th pitch, a four-seam fastball that hit the top of the strike zone. And with the hitting timing of 3B-1S, the 90.6 mile (approximately 145.8km) sinker was driven into the middle of the strike zone on the fifth pitch, and this time it was a grounder to first base.
There were no hits even in the middle of the game. Bae Ji-hwan once again faced Assad in his third at-bat in the top of the fifth inning, and swung his bat vigorously at the high sinker on the sixth pitch at a full count of 3B-2S. Bae Ji-hwan’s batted ball, which flew at a speed of 95.9 miles (about 154.3 km), flew 358 feet (about 109.1 m), but he swallowed his regret as it was caught by the center fielder in front of the center fence.
In his last at-bat, he cried at the umpire’s unclear decision. Ji-hwan Bae faced the Cubs’ new pitcher, Mark Reiter Jr., in the top of the 8th inning. With a full count of 3B-2S, Reiter Jr.’s cutter on the 6th pitch went far outside the strike zone. But here the referee declared a strike.
Reiter Jr. is a right-handed pitcher, and since the ball did not sweep past the strike zone, it could not have been an absurd decision from Bae Ji-hwan’s perspective. Bae Ji-hwan completed all his duties in the attack that day, indirectly expressing his regret by throwing his head back when the referee called a strikeout.
The game that day was a complete victory for the Cubs. The Cubs took the lead early in the first inning, with Dansby Swanson hitting a two-run shot at first base with no outs due to a walk by Nico Horner. And the scoring streak continued. After Christopher Morrell’s walk in the second inning, the Cubs widened the gap to 4-0 with Patrick Wisdom hitting an RBI double and Horner hitting a sacrifice fly.메이저사이트
Pittsburgh also started chasing. Pittsburgh narrowed the gap in the top of the third inning with two outs and no runners on base, with Key Brian Hayes hitting a solo home run. Then, in the bottom of the third inning, with one out and no runner on base, Seiya Suzuki hit a solo home run to maintain a four-run lead. 19th home run of the season.
The Cubs won the game in the bottom of the 6th inning when Alexander Canario hit a 1-run double with 2 outs and runners on first base due to Ian Happ’s walk. And the Canarios added a whopping 8 runs, including a grand slam in the 8th inning and Cody Bellinger’s three-run home run, winning 14-1. The Cubs, who are competing for the National League wild card, succeeded in breaking away from a long five-game losing streak with a win that day.