KIA Rally in 9th to Reclaim Third
The KIA Tigers beat the LG Twins 6-5 at Jamsil on the 4th for their second straight win. LG built its lead on three home runs, including a two-run shot by Austin Dean in the first, and went up 5-3 on Park Dong-won’s two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth. In the top of the ninth, Hwang Dae-in walked and Kim Ho-ryeong singled to put runners on the corners with one out. Kim Tae-gun and pinch-hitter Lee Ho-yeon then delivered RBI hits to tie it 5-5, and Harold Castro’s sacrifice fly put KIA ahead. Jeon Sang-hyun, who had thrown 35 pitches the day before, retired the side in order in the ninth. KIA moved into third at 74-61-2, while LG dropped to fourth after a seventh straight loss.
Source: Sports Kyunghyang
Doosan’s 20 Hits End Samsung’s Win Streak
The Doosan Bears routed the Samsung Lions 12-0 at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on the 4th. Yunior Severino opened the scoring with a solo homer in the second, and Yang Eui-ji’s two-run shot and Yang Seok-hwan’s solo blast helped make it 5-0 in the third. Doosan finished with 20 hits, including four home runs. Starter Wes Benjamin threw six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and two walks with three strikeouts, to earn his ninth win of the season. Veteran Jung Soo-bin recorded the 1,711th hit of his career, passing Kim Dong-joo (1,710) to set a new franchise record for the Bears. Second-place Samsung saw its six-game winning streak end and could not gain ground on first-place KT.
Source: Star News
KT Tie in Extras, Magic Number Down to 2
The KT Wiz played the Lotte Giants to a 2-2 tie over 11 innings at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 4th. KT took a 2-0 lead on Ahn Hyun-min’s sacrifice fly in the first and Jang Jun-won’s RBI hit in the second, but Lotte pulled even with Cho Se-jin’s solo homer in the fifth and Jeon Min-jae’s infield single in the eighth. Both bullpens held from there. With second-place Samsung losing to Doosan the same day, KT (85-49-5) stretched its lead over Samsung (82-53-3) to 3.5 games and cut its magic number for the regular-season title from 4 to 2. A sellout crowd of 18,700 filled the ballpark, KT’s 27th sellout of the season.
Source: Star News
SSG Score 3 in 9th, Back to Sixth
The SSG Landers beat the NC Dinos 6-2 at NC Park in Changwon on the 4th. The game turned in the top of the ninth, when SSG added three runs on Guillermo Heredia’s RBI hit, a wild pitch and back-to-back walks. NC loaded the bases in the bottom of the inning and scored once on a bases-loaded walk, but SSG closer Jo Byung-hyun shut the door. The win lifted SSG to 62-72-5 and back into sixth place, a day after NC had taken that spot. NC, which had climbed to sixth with a 13-1 rout the previous day, slipped back a place.
Source: Ilgan Sports
Ahn Woo-jin Fans 10 as Kiwoom Beat Hanwha Again
The Kiwoom Heroes beat the Hanwha Eagles 9-3 at Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon on the 4th. Davidson’s solo homer in the first gave Kiwoom the lead, and a double by Kim Jae-hyun, an RBI single by Yeom Seung-won and a sacrifice fly by Kwon Hyeok-bin made it 4-0 in the second. Hanwha cut the gap to one on Park Jung-hyun’s three-run homer in the bottom of the second, but Kiwoom pulled away again with pinch-hitter Yeo Dong-wook’s two-run homer in the third, Keston Hiura’s solo shot in the fifth and Park Chan-hyeok’s two-run single in the seventh. Starter Ahn Woo-jin gave up three runs on five hits over five innings but struck out 10 to earn his fifth win. Kiwoom have now beaten Hanwha eight straight times, while Hanwha have lost five in a row.
Source: Star News
KT Eye Title and 1 Million Fans on the 5th
The KT Wiz could celebrate twice when they host Lotte in Suwon on the 5th. With a magic number of 2, KT would clinch first place in the regular season if they beat Lotte and Samsung lose on the same day, as both results would count toward the number. An attendance milestone is also within reach. After 18,700 fans came through the gates on the 4th, KT’s season attendance stands at 985,572. If at least 14,428 fans attend on the 5th, the club will reach 1 million spectators in a season for the first time in its history. All eyes are on Suwon to see whether the title and the 1 million mark can arrive on the same day.
Source: My Daily
Gold Medalists Kwak Bin, Choi Min-seok Set to Start
Asian Games gold medal heroes Kwak Bin and Choi Min-seok are returning to the Doosan Bears’ rotation. Kwak is scheduled to start against the Lotte Giants at Sajik on the 6th, followed by Choi against the LG Twins at Jamsil on the 7th. At the Games, Kwak threw six scoreless innings against Chinese Taipei and allowed one run over 6⅓ innings in the final against Japan, while Choi led the win over China in the Super Round with seven innings of one-run ball. Manager Kim Won-hyung explained, “We moved up the rotation while adjusting the schedules of Kwak Bin and Choi Min-seok after the Asian Games.” Their return should give a lift to Doosan as the club chases fourth place.
Source: OSEN
Lee Bum-ho Praises Jeon Sang-hyun’s Back-to-Back Effort
KIA Tigers manager Lee Bum-ho heaped praise on reliever Jeon Sang-hyun, who held down the mound on consecutive days. Jeon threw 35 pitches over two scoreless innings against LG on the 3rd, then returned on the 4th to retire the side in order in the bottom of the ninth and seal a 6-5 comeback win. Explaining his decision on the 3rd, Lee said, “Even after 25 pitches, his velocity on the first pitch was still around 142-143 km/h. So I figured he hadn’t lost his strength and stuck with him to the end.” He added, “Yesterday and again today, Jeon Sang-hyun did a big job for the team.” With KIA in the thick of the race for third, Jeon’s back-to-back outings proved decisive.
Source: Money Today