The Lotte Giants are a strange team. They snapped a losing streak against the best pitcher in Korea, Eric Peddy, and saved a sweep with a ‘no-hitter,’ but the mood in the dugout is different this time. With only three team no-hitters in KBO history, the team is determined to bounce back.

On June 6, Lotte won 1-0 against SSG at Sajik Stadium in Busan without allowing a single hit. Starter Aaron Wilkerson started the game with seven innings of no-hit ball. The pitching duo of Koo Seung-min and Kim Won-joong followed with a no-hitter to complete the “team no-hitter.” Only two walks were issued in the process.

There have been 14 times in KBO history that a single pitcher has thrown a no-hitter through the ninth inning. However, this is only the third time a team has recorded a combined no-hitter. Prior to Lotte, the LG Twins did it against the NC Dinos on October 6, 2014, and SSG did it against NC in the opening game on April 2 last year.

The record was enough to excite the players as well as the manager, as it came in the midst of a team-wide slump. They also showed a willingness to rebound.

Yoon Dong-hee, who hit the game-winning hit, said in a postgame interview, “Today’s game gave us a chance to break the losing streak and go on a winning streak.” Shin Jeong-rak, who did not play, said, “I talked to coach Kang Young-sik about the no-hitter during the game, but I didn’t expect it to happen today. I hope that Lotte can use today as an opportunity to rebound in a good way.”

After the game, Lotte manager Larry Sutton said, “We’ll use today’s win to prepare well for next week’s game.” He praised Wilkerson’s command of both sides of the 토토 plate and his ability to utilize a variety of pitches to overwhelm batters with fewer pitches.”

Sutton also considered Wilkerson’s health for his next start. “He was coming off a personal no-hitter, and (as a manager) you want to keep the ball in his hand,” Sutton confessed, “but this was his second start of the week, and he threw close to 100 pitches (for the first time since coming to Korea), so you have to think about the rest of the game.