SSG Landers captain Choo Shin-soo was silent on crucial chances, unable to stop his team’s losing streak. Both the team and the player were disappointed as they had been hitting well recently.
SSG lost 6-8 in the fifth game of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League against the NC Dinos at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on Thursday. It was the second straight day the team took a knee following a 5-19 loss the day before.
SSG had the edge over NC in the pitching matchup on the day. SSG sent foreign pitcher Roenis Elias to the mound, while NC sent second-year prospect Shin Young-woo, who was making his professional debut.
However, SSG lost the batting battle to NC and fell into a losing streak, especially after a 0-for-4, three-strikeout performance from Choo Shin-soo, who started in the No. 2 spot.
Choo entered the game with the bases loaded in the bottom of the first inning with SSG tied at 0-0. He fell victim to Shin Young-woo’s first career strikeout, and struggled to make it to the dugout.
In his second at-bat of the inning with SSG up 1-0, Choo Shin-soo executed the bench’s game plan to perfection. With runners on 1-2, he calmly laid down a sacrifice bunt. SSG was able to score another run on Guillermo Heredia’s outfield sacrifice fly with one out after Choo’s sacrifice bunt.
However, Shin-Soo Choo was unable to capitalize on his next chance. With SSG trailing 2-3 in the bottom of the fourth inning, he struck out swinging against NC’s second pitcher, Seo Eui-tae. On a one-pitch, two-strike at-bat, he couldn’t handle Seo’s four-seam, 132-kilometer slider.
Shin-Soo Choo put his head down in the bottom of the sixth inning with SSG trailing 6-3. He struck out swinging against NC left-hander Kim Young-kyu. On a two-ball, two-strike at-bat, his bat was split open by a six-pitch 135-kilometer slider.
Choo Shin-soo was unable to capitalize on a two-out, bases-loaded opportunity in the bottom of the seventh inning when SSG pulled within 6-7 of NC. He retired NC right-hander Han 토토사이트 Jae-seung on a fly ball to left field. With a favorable three-ball, one-strike count, the 147-kilometer fastball was dropped in the middle of the strike zone, but it didn’t find the center of the plate.
After failing to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh, SSG went scoreless in the eighth and ninth innings. The loss was a bitter pill to swallow despite a total effort from the pitching staff, including Go Hyo-joon, Cho Byung-hyun, and Noh Kyung-eun.
Shin-Soo Choo was batting .245 (13-for-53) with one home run, eight RBIs, eight stolen bases, and a .724 OPS in 19 games prior to this game. After an injury-plagued start to the season, his bat was getting back on track. He even showed off his good form against NC on the last three days, going 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, and a run scored.
However, Shin-Soo Choo did not fulfill the role the team expected him to on this day. Aside from a sacrifice bunt in the third inning, he had chances in all four of his at-bats, but none of them came through.
SSG removed left-handed slugger Han Yoo-seom, who is tied for the league lead in home runs and RBIs, from the first team roster today with a micro-injury to his left iliotibial band. He is expected to return to the first team in 10 days, but his absence will weigh down the lineup.
SSG needed Choo Shin-soo to step up in the first game without Han Yoo-seom. With the bitter taste of a disappointing loss, SSG will prepare for the next game.