Pirates' Bae Ji-hwan pulls off a stunning come-from-behind victory

South Korean utility player Bae Ji-hwan for the Pittsburgh Pirates contributed to the club’s winning by seven to six in his first MLB match this year by making a timely hit in the bottom of the 9th inning.

While playing for the Indianapolis Indians, the Pirates’ Triple-A affiliate, Bae was told to return to the MLB prior to a home match with San Francisco scheduled for Wednesday. Joining the starting lineup as a center fielder batting ninth, he scored a hit and a walk in three at-bats with one RBI, two Rs, and one SB. Fighting hard even to the 10th inning, Pittsburgh garnered a victory by seven to six.

Bae made his first hit on his comeback day to the league with the bases loaded with one out in the bottom of the 9th inning when his team lost by two to six. He made a right-field hit out of SF closing pitcher Camilo Doval’s sinker flying at 99 miles per hour, bringing the third base runner home and sparking momentum for the team to chase for the competitor. With two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning, he stepped onto the home plate thanks to Oneil Cruz’s hit at a perfect timing to make the score six to six. In his second at-bat, he recorded a walk and grabbed hold of the second base job. Afterwards, the follow-up batters did their part to make the score two to four.

Pirates second baseman Nick Gonzales, who ended the game with a walk-off hit, thanked his teammates, including Bae, who made a timely hit, for playing their part in winning the game. Gonzales and Bae played in the Triple-A team this year.

Bae played 111 matches last year at the MLB but started this season in the Single-A because of a left hip flexor injury. Playing for Indianapolis, he had 27 games with a batting average of 0.367, four home runs, 15 RBIs, and seven SBs, and he returned to the MLB. He topped the International League, where Indianapolis belongs, in terms of BA.


Kyu-In Hwang kini@donga.com