BUSAN (Interstat) — Hanwha Eagles struck for three first-inning runs and never surrendered the lead, defeating Lotte Giants 6-2 on a Sunday afternoon at Busan Sajik Baseball Stadium. The visiting Eagles improved to 53-72-5, while the Giants, playing at home, dropped to 57-69-2. Hanwha finished with 10 hits and Lotte had eight. The game was played during the afternoon.

The Eagles wasted little time against Lotte starter Na Gyun-an. Sim Woo-jun singled to center field, Choi In-ho singled to right, and after a popout, Kang Baek-ho singled to center-right to bring home Sim. Yonathan Perlaza followed with a single down the right-field line that scored Choi, and Heo In-seo added a sacrifice fly to left that plated Kang. By the time Kwon Kwang-min fouled out, Hanwha had a three-run cushion. Kang finished 2-for-3 with two RBIs, while Park Jung-hyun went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs.

Lotte had chances early but could not cash them in. In the bottom of the first, Hwang Seong-bin walked and Na Seung-yeup and Victor Reyes singled, but Han Dong-hui struck out and Go Seung-min grounded out to second. The Giants left runners in scoring position again in the second and third, managing traffic against Hanwha pitching without a breakthrough. Na Gyun-an settled in after the first, retiring Hanwha in order in the second and working around a Choi single in the third with a double play.

Lotte put a runner on in the second when Jeon Min-jae singled to right and Jang Du-seong singled in front of left, but Han Tae-yang struck out and Hwang Seong-bin reached on a fielder’s choice that ended the threat. In the third, Na Seung-yeup and Go Seung-min walked, but Han Dong-hui and Jeon Min-jae struck out. Son Seong-bin singled in the fourth, but Jang Du-seong flied out to left and Han Tae-yang struck out. Hanwha’s pitchers repeatedly worked around traffic.

Lotte finally broke through with a two-run rally in the fifth. Na Seung-yeup walked, Victor Reyes doubled down the right-field line, and Han Dong-hui singled to right-center to score Na. Go Seung-min then reached on a fielder’s choice that erased Han at second but allowed Reyes to score, cutting the deficit to one. Hanwha’s bullpen prevented further damage, and the Eagles answered in the sixth.

Choi In-ho singled to left to begin the sixth, and after a strikeout, Kang Baek-ho singled to center to drive in Choi. That hit restored a two-run lead and gave Kang his second RBI of the afternoon. In the seventh, Park Jung-hyun homered to left field, extending the margin. Hanwha added its final run in the ninth when Park doubled down the left-field line to score Lee Won-seok, capping a game in which Hanwha’s lineup applied pressure throughout.

Hanwha’s pitching staff made the lead stand. Joo Hyun-sang earned the win with 1 1/3 innings of one-hit, scoreless relief, striking out two. Lee Sang-kyu followed with 2 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing four hits and three walks while striking out three. Jang Ji-su was sharp over 2 1/3 no-hit innings, walking one and striking out two. Kim Seo-hyeon recorded the save with 2 1/3 innings, yielding one hit and one walk with one strikeout. The combined effort kept Lotte from building a sustained rally.

Na Gyun-an took the loss after six innings. He allowed seven hits and four earned runs, struck out eight and walked none. Kim Won-jung pitched one inning and allowed one earned run on one hit with one strikeout. Lee Jun-seo and Lee Jin-ha each tossed a scoreless inning, with each giving up one hit. Kim Seo-hyeon now has two saves this season, and Joo Hyun-sang moved to 1-0, while Na Gyun-an fell to 6-10.

For Hanwha, Choi In-ho had four hits and scored twice, setting the table from the top of the order. Kang Baek-ho added two hits and two RBIs, and Park Jung-hyun supplied the power with his home run and two RBIs. Heo In-seo drove in a run with a sacrifice fly. Yonathan Perlaza also singled and drove in a run. The Eagles’ 10-hit attack was enough to support a bullpen that held Lotte scoreless over the final four innings.

Lotte’s brightest moments came from Victor Reyes, who doubled and scored, and Han Dong-hui, who singled and drove in a run. Na Seung-yeup reached base multiple times and scored, while Hwang Seong-bin drew a walk and later reached on a fielder’s choice. Jeon Min-jae and Jang Du-seong also singled for Lotte, and Son Seong-bin was hit by a pitch in the eighth before being stranded. The Giants finished with eight hits but stranded several runners, going without a hit in key spots after the fifth. Their best chance to cut further into the lead ended when Reyes fouled out to left field with runners in scoring position in the eighth.

The result continued a recent pattern in the head-to-head series. Hanwha had won three of the previous five meetings before Lotte took the two most recent matchups. On Sunday, the Eagles avoided a third straight defeat against Lotte with a balanced performance. Lotte, meanwhile, remained ahead of Hanwha in the season standings despite the loss, though the Giants missed a chance to gain ground. Both clubs are scheduled to continue their schedules next week.

The afternoon game drew attention for the way Hanwha scored in bursts. The Eagles plated three in the first, one in the sixth, one in the seventh and one in the ninth. Lotte answered with two in the fifth but could not string together another rally. Hanwha’s defense turned key double plays and its relief corps retired Lotte hitters when it mattered, preserving the four-run final margin.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Hanwha Eagles 0, Lotte Giants 7. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Lotte with a 52 percent probability to win. Those projections were recorded before the game, and the actual result produced a different outcome.