Hanwha Eagles Soar to Victory: How Kim Tae-yeon’s Home Run Shattered Kiwoom’s Ace An Woo-jin

[SPOTV News — Gocheok] Hanwha used a balanced attack and timely hitting to beat Kiwoom 10-1 on May 14 at Gocheok Sky Dome, taking the three-game midweek series, 2-1.

The win improved the Eagles to 18-21 (.462) after avenging a loss from the previous day. Kiwoom dropped to 14-1-25 (.359) and remains in last place.

Jeong, the Hanwha starter, didn’t reach five innings but was effective, working four innings with one run and one hit while reaching a career-high 73 pitches. The bottom third of the order propelled the offense: No. 6 Heo In-seo had a three-hit night with a homer; No. 7 Kim Tae-yeon delivered the decisive solo shot off An; No. 8 Lee Do-yoon doubled twice and drove in two; and No. 9 Lee Won-seok added multiple hits, including a two-run insurance homer.

# Hanwha Eagles starting lineup

Hwang Young-muk (2B) - Yonathan Peraza (RF) - Moon Hyun-bin (LF) - Kang Baek-ho (DH) - No Si-hwan (3B) - Heo In-seo (C) - Kim Tae-yeon (1B) - Lee Do-yoon (SS) - Lee Won-seok (CF), SP Jeong Woo-ju

Manager Kim Kyung-moon said he expected Jeong to bounce back. Jeong’s first start of the season, on May 7 against KIA, lasted just 1 2/3 innings and yielded two runs; he gave up only one hit but walked four. Kim felt that facing An in the starter’s duel would provide extra motivation for Jeong.

# Kiwoom Heroes starting lineup

Seo Geon-chang (DH) - Ahn Chi-hong (2B) - Choi Joo-hwan (1B) - Lim Byung-wook (RF) - Trenton Brooks (LF) - Park Joo-hong (CF) - Kim Gun-hee (C) - Choi Jae-young (3B) - Kwon Hyuk-bin (SS), SP An Woo-jin

Veteran Seo Geon-chang, who’s hit .313 with a .476 on-base percentage across four games since returning to the first team, led off for Kiwoom. Manager Seol Jong-jin praised Seo for his team-first approach. On why Yang Hyeon-jong was left out of the lineup, Seol said his offense hasn’t been clicking and that has shown up in his defense as well.

Hanwha struck first. In the second inning, No Si-hwan doubled and Heo followed with an RBI single to put the Eagles up. Jeong matched An through three innings, throwing 48 pitches with one walk and no runs allowed.

Jeong surrendered the tie in the fourth, but it wasn’t a collapse. After hitting Ahn Chi-hong with a pitch, Jeong retired Choi Joo-hwan and Lim Byung-wook on flyouts for two outs. A bloop off Trenton Brooks then fell between center, right and second base, bringing in a run despite Peraza’s full-effort sprint to the ball.

That concluded Jeong’s outing. His 73 pitches through four innings set a new pro single-game high. His previous regular-season high was 54 pitches (Sept. 15, 2025 vs. Kiwoom in Daejeon); including postseason, his prior high was 67 pitches (Oct. 22, 2025, Game 4 vs. Samsung in Daegu).

Although Jeong left without earning the win, Hanwha reclaimed the lead off An in the top of the fifth. Kim Tae-yeon crushed a slider over the left-field wall — An’s first homer allowed in six starts and 20 innings this season. It was also Kim’s first career hit off An.

With the score 2-1, Lee Do-yoon’s double created more trouble for Kiwoom. After Lee Won-seok’s sacrifice bunt, An’s throw to third was ruled a fielder’s choice, leaving runners at first and third with no outs. With one out, Peraza grounded to first; Lee Do-yoon beat the relay home. The umpires overturned the initial out call after video review and awarded the run, making it 3-1.

After Jeong exited having allowed one earned run through four, Hanwha turned to Park Jun-young for 1 2/3 innings, then Lee Min-woo for 1 1/3 innings. Both relievers held Kiwoom scoreless and preserved the 3-1 lead.

The game opened up in the eighth. Following hits by Kang Baek-ho and Heo In-seo, Lee Do-yoon ripped a two-run double to center. Lee Won-seok then launched an opposite-field, two-run homer to make it 7-1 — the decisive blow. In the ninth, No Si-hwan added an RBI double and Heo capped the scoring with a two-run homer, pushing Hanwha to double digits.

Jo Dong-wook was brought in the eighth to protect the lead. In the ninth, Jack Cushing closed it out after the Eagles extended the margin to 10-1. With his contract set to expire in two days, Cushing lowered his ERA from 4.82 to 4.58.