"Hey! Couldn't that have been a double play?" The junior player, three years younger, replied with a four-year age gap: "I did it on purpose... because I trust you." Samsung's Won Tae-in and Lee Jae-hyun reveal their heartwarming behind-the-scenes story.

*This content was translated by AI.

Won Tae-in (26) and Lee Jae-hyun (23). A heartwarming behind-the-scenes story has been revealed about Samsung Lions' ace pitcher and the infield pillar known for his four-year age gap with teammates.

On the 25th, Samsung defeated Doosan 4-1 in a regular-season away game at Seoul Jamsil Baseball Stadium as part of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League. With this victory, Samsung, which had secured a decisive 15-4 win on the 24th, achieved three consecutive victories and continued its upward momentum.

Samsung maintained its sole first-place position in the league with 57 wins, 2 draws, and 34 losses, achieving seven consecutive winning series. Samsung will challenge for a series sweep on the 26th by fielding substitute foreign pitcher Austin Bost.

On this day, Won Tae-in allowed one run in the first inning but then maintained scoreless pitching from the second inning onward.

Then, with Samsung leading 4-1, Doosan came to bat in the bottom of the sixth inning, which was Won Tae-in's final pitching inning of the game.

Won Tae-in struck out leadoff hitter Son A-seop on a swing-and-miss strikeout, then allowed a hit to the left-center field gap to Park Jun-soon. The next batter was Yang Eui-ji. With a 2-2 count, he attacked the fifth pitch; his bat broke, and the ball rolled slowly and somewhat short toward the shortstop's position.

Samsung shortstop Lee Jae-hyun ran forward to field the ball, then threw it toward first base to record one out.

At that moment, a scene was captured on TV broadcast where Won Tae-in said something to Lee Jae-hyun. It appeared to be a message implying, "Couldn't we have gotten a double play if you had thrown to second base?" In response, Lee Jae-hyun smiled brightly and conveyed that it would not have been easy.

Park Yong-taek, the commentator for the game broadcast, also stated his view: "I wondered what would have happened if Lee Jae-hyun had tried to go for a play at second base. However, given the fielding position, he would have needed to turn his body backward before throwing, so that would not have been easy."

After the game, Won Tae-in shared the behind-the-scenes story of this incident. He said, "I thought (Jae-hyun) could have made it a double play, so I asked why he didn't throw to second base. Suddenly, he responded like this: 'Because I trust you... I intentionally created a situation with two outs and no runners on base. We can't afford to get greedy there and make an error. Even if I just throw to first base and record one out, I believe it will prevent that crisis situation, so I preferred the safer play.' When I heard that, I had nothing more to say. (Laughs) Of course, I said it as a joke too, but since Jae-hyun responded in kind, we just ended it with some fun." He smiled. The scene conveyed the genuine friendship between the two men.

Samsung's starting pitcher Won Tae-in successfully delivered a quality start (six innings pitched with three or fewer earned runs allowed), allowing six hits, no walks, striking out four batters, and giving up one earned run over six innings (88 pitches total) to secure his fifth win of the season. Additionally, Lee Jae-hyun contributed offensively by hitting a two-run home run to left field in the second inning, going 1-for-3 with one hit (one home run), two RBIs, one run scored, and one walk, helping Won Tae-in on the offensive side as well.

After the game, Lee Jae-hyun said, "In my first at-bat, I swung at a pitch that was far outside the strike zone. From the next at-bat onward, I focused heavily on not swinging at breaking balls. Thanks to concentrating on that part, I believe it led to the home run."

He continued, "Although I have recorded double-digit home runs for four consecutive seasons, I personally do not attach great significance to that. I still feel there is much room before I can say I have shown consistent performance. I need to continue hitting home runs more consistently until the end of the season. I will keep striving to maintain my current good batting form until the season concludes."

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*This content was translated by AI.