'RBI Leader' Kang Baek-ho batting leadoff? Why not Lee Won-seok? Manager Dal sighs, "We needed a few more runs..." Hanwha changes starting lineup [Daejeon on-site]

*This content was translated by AI.

Kang Baek-ho (27, Hanwha Eagles), who leads the league in RBIs, will make a surprise appearance as the leadoff hitter. Hanwha manager Kim Kyung-moon (68) has pulled the Kang Baek-ho leadoff card as a solution to the team's frustrating lineup.

Hanwha has named Kang Baek-ho as the leadoff hitter for their home game against the SSG Landers at Daejeon Hanwha Life Park on the 30th in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League.

The lineup proceeds as follows: Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter)-Yonatan Peraza (right fielder)-Moon Hyun-bin (left fielder)-Noh Si-hwan (third baseman)-Chae Eun-seong (first baseman)-Ha Ju-seok (second baseman)-Lee Do-yoon (shortstop)-Choi Jae-hoon (catcher)-Lee Won-seok (center fielder). Ryu Hyun-jin will take the mound as the starting pitcher.

Hanwha is currently ranked sixth in batting average this season with a team batting average of 0.259. The team's ERA is 5.27, a situation that is even worse. With poor pitching and hitting balance, good results are unlikely. The team sits in a tie for seventh place with 11 wins and 15 losses.

The thinking is to maximize the lineup's power to overcome the crisis. Manager Kim explained, "(Oh) Jae-won has been batting leadoff but is somewhat stuck, and then (Lee) Won-seok came in and initially got on base well, but while his batting average is now hitting .300, he is not getting on base well. A lot has gone wrong with the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd hitters. Still, with the hope of scoring a few more runs, that is how we constructed the lineup."

However, the numbers tell a somewhat different story. Lee Won-seok has put up solid numbers in 17 games this season with a batting average of 0.298 (57 at-bats, 17 hits), an on-base percentage of 0.355, a slugging percentage of 0.368, and an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.723. His performance as a leadoff hitter was even better. He posted a batting average of 0.350 (40 at-bats, 14 hits), an on-base percentage of 0.395, a slugging percentage of 0.450, and an OPS of 0.845.

Rather, Hanwha suddenly moved Lee Won-seok to the lower part of the lineup starting from the 24th and alternated between Hwang Young-mok and Oh Jae-won as the leadoff hitter. Since then, the team has fallen into a five-game hitless slump, and their batting average, which had reached 0.386, has dropped to 0.298.

Furthermore, doubts follow as to whether Kang Baek-ho batting leadoff will yield more benefits than drawbacks. Kang Baek-ho is currently batting 0.283 this season, but in scoring position, he is showing remarkable focus with a 0.455 average and leads the league with 30 RBIs. On the other hand, his on-base percentage is 0.347, which is not particularly high even within the team.

While he can seize RBI opportunities batting leadoff, the ability to get on base in the lower part of the lineup is necessary, so there is a significant possibility that the effect will be halved.

Today's game features Ryu Hyun-jin on the mound, where a minimum of runs allowed can be expected, making it a match where a victory must be secured. Can Hanwha's changed lineup make Ryu Hyun-jin smile?

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*This content was translated by AI.