"It's my second consecutive fight for my mother's country." Dunning said, "I erased my anger against Taiwan and threw it for the team"

*This content was translated by AI.

Dane Dunning (32, Seattle Mariners), a "Korean-American Major League right-hander," expressed his joy of winning the team and achieving his goal of advancing to the next round, leaving behind the disappointment of a home run against Taiwan on the previous day (8th).

The Korean baseball team, led by head coach Ryu Ji-hyun (55), beat Australia 7-2 in the fourth Group C match of the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) at Tokyo Dome, Japan, at 7 p.m. on the 9th.

Ahead of the game, the number of cases in which Korea advanced to the quarterfinals was virtually difficult. In addition to having to catch Australia, the team with a low run rate had to meet the conditions of "less than two runs" and "winning by more than five points" at the same time as the team with a low run rate went up according to the tournament regulations.

On this day, Dunning took the mound in the bottom of the seventh inning with a 6-1 lead and pitched one inning, one hit, one walk, and no runs. Dunning, who gave up a walk after a close full count against leadoff batter Alex Hall, was on the verge of first and second bases with no outs after a hit by Jarryd Dale. However, he induced the next Robbie Glendinning to ground out to shortstop and caught the double play. In an instant, he became a third base with two outs, and then struck out Rickson Wyngross to complete a scoreless inning.

In fact, Dunning took the mound in the seventh inning against Taiwan on the 8th and was not good with two hits (one homer) and one strikeout and two runs in one ⅔ inning. In particular, Stewart Fairchild allowed a two-run shot in the top of the eighth inning with a 3-2 lead. However, he immediately turned the tables the next day with consecutive struggles.

Dunning's consecutive pitching on the day is said to be the second in his career since the 2023 World Series for the Texas Rangers. Dunning, who is a waste of starting resources, not bullpens, showed his fighting spirit to break his routine. For my mother's country.

Dunning, who met with reporters after the match against Australia on the 9th, expressed his honest feelings about the home run he allowed in the match against Taiwan. "I thought the slider went in well yesterday, but the opponent's batter made a really good swing," he said, adding, "I was actually angry with my performance, so it felt like 'Seeing red'."

Dunning said, "I tried to completely clear yesterday's emotions in my head ahead of today's game," stressing that he focused on his role until the end despite unfortunate scenes such as leadoff walks.

Regarding his experience with the team during this tournament, Dunning continued to use the word "joy" and expressed his deep affection for the Korean team. "I really enjoy playing with this team. It is a very unique and special group that perfectly combines talented young players and experienced veterans," he said.

In particular, Dunning couldn't hide his joy that South Korea confirmed its advance to the second round (the quarterfinals) for the first time in 17 years and got on a flight to the U.S. "I'm happy that my colleagues have experienced baseball in the United States, and most of all, I'm most excited that our journey is not over yet," he said.

Finally, Dunning burned his will to take the mound in the rest of the game with the mindset of "throwing the ball to the best of his ability and leaving the rest to God's will."

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*This content was translated by AI.