Kiwoom completes its first sweep of the second half.
The Kiwoom Heroes, coached by Hong Won-ki, won their 14th game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against the Lotte Giants 7-6 on Tuesday at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea, for their third straight win and first sweep of the second half of the season. It was the first sweep in 59 days since June 20-22 against the Daegu Samsung Lions.
Kiwoom started the game with rookie Oh Sang-won. Ariel Furado followed, but he was sent down to the second team to rest. After Oh Sang-won gave up three runs in 1.2 innings, Ha Young-min pitched 2.1 innings of one-run ball. Park Seung-ju followed with two scoreless innings and Moon Sung-hyun with one scoreless inning. Kim Jae-woong was shaky with two runs in 0.2 innings, but Lee Myung-jong held on. In the ninth inning, Lim Chang-min pitched a three-hit shutout to earn his 21st save of the season.
At the plate, Lim Byung-wook hit a cool two-run homer in the fourth inning. He finished 2-for-2 with a double, two RBIs, two walks and three runs scored. Ronnie Dawson also had two hits and an RBI, and Kim Jun-Wando had one hit and two RBI. Kim Dong-heon drove in the game-winning run with a line drive to center field.
Lotte lost its third straight game. Starter Park Se-woong pitched six innings of four-hit ball, striking out nine and allowing three runs (one earned). However, he was not able to smile as two of Park’s crucial errors led to unearned runs, and he was unable to put the game out of reach in the eighth inning. Lee Jung-geun’s three hits and one RBI, Lee Jung-hoon’s three hits and two RBI, and Bae Young-bin’s three hits and one RBI in his professional debut were all overshadowed by the loss.
Kiwoom’s lineup was Kim Jun-wan (left fielder), Kim Hye-sung (second baseman), Ronnie Dawson (center fielder), Song Sung-moon (third baseman), Kim Hui-jip (shortstop), Lee Joo-hyung (designated hitter), Jeon Byung-woo (first baseman), Lim Byung-wook (right fielder), and Kim Xiang (catcher).
Lotte’s starting lineup was Ahn Kwon-soo (left fielder), Kim Min-seok (center fielder), Lee Jeong-hoon (designated hitter), Ahn Chi-hong (first baseman), Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Han Dong-hee (third baseman), Park Seung-wook (second baseman), Jeong Jung-geun (catcher), and Bae Young-bin (shortstop).
Lotte took the lead in the first inning. Two batters later, Lee Jung-hoon singled. Ahn Chi-hong followed with an RBI double to make it 1-0. A wild pitch by Oh Sang-won and a walk by Yoon Dong-hee put runners on second and third, but no runs were scored.
Lotte loaded the bases in the second inning. Park Seung-wook walked and Lee Jung-geun and Bae Young-geun hit back-to-back singles. Ahn Kwon-soo and Kim Min-seok walked, but Lee Jung-hoon hit an RBI double.
Kiwoom got the tying run in the bottom of the third. Lim Byung-wook walked and Kim Xiang singled, followed by Kim Jun-wan’s RBI single to cut the deficit to 1-3.
Lotte made it 4-1 in the top of the fourth when Bae Young-bin led off with a double, Ahn Kwon-soo followed with a sacrifice bunt, and Kim Min-seok hit a sacrifice fly to center field. Bae Young-bin’s feet shined.
Kiwoom added another run in the bottom of the fourth. Leadoff hitter Kim Hwijip reached on an error. Two batters later, Lim Byung-wook hit a 115-meter chase home run with two outs.
The fifth and sixth innings were scoreless. Kiwoom, who had a bullpen day with two outs in the second inning, also pitched well and kept Lotte in the game except for one run in the fourth inning.
Kiwoom finally tied the game in the seventh inning. Leadoff hitter Kim Tae-jin reached on an error by second baseman Park Seung-wook. Lim Byung-wook followed with a single. Kim Dong-heon’s sacrifice bunt and Kim Jun-wan’s sacrifice fly brought home Kim Tae-jin. Kim Hye-sung followed with a double, bringing home Lim Byung-wook. Dawson followed with an RBI single to make the score 6-4.
Lotte made it 5-6 in the eighth inning when Jung Hoon, the pinch-hitter, hit an RBI double. Bae Young-bin then singled and Jeon Jun-woo grounded out to tie the game at 6-6, but it was not enough.메이저놀이터
Kiwoom had the bases loaded in the eighth after Lee Yong-kyu singled, Kim Tae-jin walked, and Lim Byung-wook singled. Kim Dong-heon hit a ball to center field to make it 7-6. No more runs were scored. The game went to the ninth inning.
Closer Lim Chang-min pitched for the third straight game. He got Ahn Chi-hong to fly out to left, Yoon Dong-hee to strike out swinging, and Lee Hak-joo to fly out to second.