Left-handed foreign pitcher Roenis Elias helped the SSG Landers snap a five-game losing streak.
Elias started a home game against the LG Twins of the 2023 KBO Baseball League at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on Tuesday.
Elias, who signed with SSG ahead of this season, has a powerful arsenal of pitches, but has been criticized for his lack of consistency. Prior to this start, he was 5-5 with a 4.10 ERA.
However, on this day, Elias showed his power and shut down the No. 1 LG batting lineup. Coupled with his steady command of the game, he stayed on the mound until the eighth inning, the most innings in the KBO.
From the outset, Elias was in fine form. In the top of the first inning, Hong Chang-ki and Shin Min-jae reached on a grounder to shortstop and a straight hit by the pitcher, respectively. Kim Hyun-soo singled up the middle, but Austin Dean flied out to left field. In the top of the second, Moon calmly retired Moon Bo-kyung (fly to left), Moon Sung-joo (grounder to shortstop), and Kim Min-sung (strikeout) to complete his first three-hit shutout inning of the day.
In the top of the third, he continued his streak. Heo Do-hwan (fly to left field), Park Hae-min (grounder to second base), and Hong Chang-ki (grounder to catcher) all reached base. In the top of the fourth, Shin gave up a leadoff single to Shin Min-jae, but induced Kim Hyun-soo to fly out to shortstop and Austin to ground out to the pitcher to end the inning on three hits.
The top of the fifth inning was just as clean. Moon Bo-kyung and Moon Sung-joo were retired on an infield fly and a grounder to first base, respectively, and Kim Min-sung was stranded on a grounder to shortstop.
However, the top of the sixth inning was disappointing. The leadoff hitter, Heo Do-hwan, hit a solo arch over the left field fence. Fortunately, Park Hae-min (shortstop fly), Hong Chang-ki (second baseman’s grounder), and Shin Min-jae (foul fly to left field) singled to end the threat.
The top of the seventh inning was uneventful again. The first batter, Kim Hyun-soo, grounded out to first base. Austin gave up a single to left, but Moon and Moon Sung-ju followed with back-to-back flies to left field.
Elias, who was still on the mound in the top of the eighth inning, ended his day by retiring Kim Min-sung (grounder to third), Heo Do-hwan (catcher’s interference), and Park Hae-min (grounder to first). On his way back to the dugout, he raised his hands in the air to encourage his teammates.토토사이트
His final line was eight innings, four hits, one walk, and one strikeout. Out of a total of 104 pitches, he utilized his fastball (60 pitches), which was measured up to 152 mph, along with his changeup (25 pitches) and slider (19 pitches). With Elias’ dominant performance, along with Kang Jin-sung’s (3-for-3, RBI, 1 run scored), SSG defeated LG 2-1. With the win, SSG snapped a five-game losing streak and improved its record to 56 wins, 1 draw, and 46 losses.
Elias, who picked up his sixth win of the season with the shutout, said after the game, “I pitched my best. I pitched the eighth inning because I thought the bullpen was overloaded this week,” he said. “Every time I go out there, my goal is to help the team win. That’s all I was thinking about today,” he concluded.