Won Tae-in pitched well in the ninth inning, but Ryu Ji-hyuk's injury departure was disappointing

Samsung has drawn its first extra-inning game of the season.

Samsung battled to a 2-2 tie in the 12th inning against LG on Sunday at Jamsil Stadium, but couldn't get the win.

However, the pitching staff did perform well on the day.

Starting pitcher Won Tae-in pitched five innings, allowing one run on six hits with two walks and six strikeouts.

It was Won's first start of the season, and after pitching in three big international tournaments last year, including the World Baseball Classic, Asian Games, and Asian Professional Baseball Championship, Won was tired and was making his fourth start of the year.

He had a special experience leading up to the start of the season. He gained confidence from meeting with players from the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers, who traveled to Korea to play the opening game of the season. Won was assigned to Team Korea during the exhibition games and was able to face them in scrimmages.

On the 16th, he spoke with Tyler Glasnow of the Dodgers at a youth clinic to familiarize himself with the questions he had. On the 17th, he struck out Manny Machado on a swinging strikeout in a scrimmage against San Diego.

Won Tae-in said he was "very excited" ahead of the game against LG at Jamsil Stadium on Sept. 26, saying, "I was nervous and shaky after playing such a big game, but the excitement was even greater."

Samsung started the season on a high note, winning both games against KT in Suwon on March 23-24. "I want to enjoy this atmosphere with the team as soon as possible," said Won Tae-in, who was unable to watch the games from the dugout because he was not yet on the roster.

He also can't wait to use a pitch he's been thinking about, which he learned from Glassnow. "With my changeup, I needed something to back it up because so many guys were preparing for it. I have a lot of pitches to throw up until the second strike, but when I need a strikeout, I thought I didn't have enough pitches besides my changeup. I asked Glassnow about it, and he said, "I haven't perfected it yet," but I vowed to try it in this game.

In his 92-pitch outing, Won threw 20 fastballs (up to 149 mph). He mixed in 39 sliders, 24 changeups, and nine curveballs. The only run he gave up was a single to Kim Hyun-soo in the first inning. With a 2-1 lead, Won turned to his bullpen in the sixth inning.

Unfortunately, Won's need for a winning pitcher didn't last long. In the bottom of the sixth, the second pitcher, Kim Tae-hoon, gave up an RBI single to Moon Sung-joo to tie the game.

With the score tied at 2-2, Samsung turned to its bullpen, and in the ninth inning, Kim Jae-yoon took the mound.

Kim Jae-yoon took the mound in the eighth inning after taking a 3-2 lead the day before, but gave up a solo home run to Hong Chang-ki to tie the game. With the score tied 3-3 in the ninth, Oh Seung-hwan came on in relief but couldn't prevent the loss. He gave up a sacrifice fly to Moon Sung-joo to end the game.

"There are 141 games left," Samsung manager Park Jin-man said of Kim Jae-yoon before the game. He also said, "You get a little bit stronger by playing such games," and consoled himself by saying, "I think (such games) were good in the beginning."

Manager Park Jin-man sent out Kim Jae-yoon in the same situation. The opposing batter was even Hong Chang-ki. Kim got Hong to fly out to center field and then struck out Kim Hyun-soo and Austin Dean in quick succession.

The game eventually went to extra innings, and Kim Jae-yoon, who remained on the mound in the 10th inning, overcame his nightmare from the previous day by striking out Oh Ji-hwan, Koo Bon-hyeok, and Park Dong-won.

However, no additional runs were forthcoming to secure the victory.

Samsung also had to deal with some unfortunate injury news. Ryu Ji-hyeok, who started at second base in the seventh inning, battled LG starter Choi Won-tae for seven pitches before reaching base on an infield single in front of the shortstop.

The next batter, Kim Hyun-joon, attempted to steal second base, but Ryu slipped and collided with shortstop Oh Ji-hwan, causing him to cry out in pain.

Ryu was unable to get up from the ground and was eventually taken off on a stretcher. A Samsung team official said, "According to the results of the MRI examination, there is a suspicion of partial damage to the labrum of the left shoulder joint." He will undergo one more examination for an accurate diagnosis, but it is inevitable that he will be sidelined.

This is especially disappointing for Ryu, as he had been batting .400 with 10 hits, four doubles, and three RBIs in the first three games of the season, helping the team to a strong start.

Samsung will play the final game of a three-game midweek series against LG at Jamsil Stadium on Monday. Samsung has announced Lee Seung-min as its starting pitcher. If he appears in the 28th game, he will surpass LG's Park Yong-taek (retired) for the most KBO games pitched in his career with 2,237.