A 6⅓-inning masterpiece erasing a 5-hour, 5-minute nightmare! "Wang Yencheng, Wang Yencheng" — as Hanwha fans chanted his name, the 25th-year-old Taiwanese pitcher simply said, "Thank you." [Daejeon]

*This content was translated by AI.

Hanwha Eagles' Asia quota player Wang Yencheng (25) delivered a strong performance over many innings, erasing the nightmare from the previous day (the 8th).

On the 9th, at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark, in a regular-season home game against LG Twins in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League, Wang Yencheng pitched 6⅓ innings, allowing 7 hits, issuing 3 walks, recording 4 strikeouts, and giving up 3 earned runs, leading Hanwha to an 11-3 victory.

With this win, Hanwha, which had tied the first home series against LG this year at 1 win and 1 loss, improved to 15 wins and 20 losses, maintaining 8th place in the league. LG, with 22 wins and 13 losses, had stumbled.

Hanwha completely dominated in the pitching duel. LG's Yoni Chirinos collapsed, pitching 3⅔ innings, allowing 4 hits (including 1 home run), issuing 4 walks and hit-by-pitches (3 walks, 1 hit-by-pitch), striking out 4, and giving up 4 runs. In contrast, Wang Yencheng mixed a fastball reaching up to 149 km/h (40 pitches), a two-seam fastball (21 pitches), a slider (21 pitches), and a forkball (11 pitches), throwing a total of 93 pitches and carrying the game through the 7th inning.

Thanks to this, Hanwha was able to wash away, at least somewhat, the nightmare of the previous day, when they used seven pitchers and lost after a grueling 5-hour, 5-minute battle. After the game, Hanwha manager Kim Kyung-moon commented, "It was not an easy game, as we had just missed a valuable match yesterday (the 8th). I want to praise all the players for bringing the victory with their strong performances."

He continued, "Starting pitcher Wang Yencheng took responsibility through the 7th inning and performed his role as a starter excellently. It was good pitching. I also want to tell all our players that they worked hard by showing focused performance on both offense and defense."

With this, Wang Yencheng secured his first win since the April 4 game against Doosan Bears at Jamsil, about a month later. Wang Yencheng said, "I didn't think much about the lack of luck. I felt that my teammates were working hard. I am grateful to the manager for giving me the chance to pitch in the 7th inning. I was also thankful that the position players hit many hits even though the game went late yesterday."

He expressed regret that he did not finish the 7th inning, rather than focusing on his personal win. On this day, out of 93 total pitches, only 56 were strikes, meaning he issued relatively many balls.

Wang Yencheng said, "Today, I issued 3 walks again. Not just today, but for several games, I've issued about 3 walks each time. I think this is the part I need to improve the most. I will ask my coaches and senior players for advice and move forward."

As the first player to join Hanwha under the newly introduced Asia quota system this year, Wang Yencheng has been delivering performances beyond expectations. In 7 regular-season games, he has recorded 3 wins and 2 losses with an ERA of 2.64, earning him great love from Hanwha fans with results comparable to a one-two punch.

Wang Yencheng said, "Many people from Taiwan come before and after games to chant my name, and I am truly grateful and moved. The people of Daejeon also cheered for me a lot when I went to buy coffee or take a taxi, which gave me great strength." He added, "Some fans even bought me desserts, and Ra Myeon-jip (President) ordered gimbap for me. I am just grateful."

With the 17th sellout crowd of the season, 17,000 fans filling the stadium, many Hanwha fans on the first-base side loudly chanted Wang Yencheng's name as he wore the Dream Soon-i collaboration uniform. Wang Yencheng said, "I heard I wore this for Parents' Day, and I think the pink color suits me well. It's very cute. (When the reporter said it suits me well) Thank you," and smiled brightly.

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*This content was translated by AI.