'Maximum 153km' Eom Jun-sang 3 innings KKK → Final grand slam explosion' Deoksu 12 consecutive finals undefeated! Beat Yatapo and win the E-Mart Cup [E-Mart Bae site review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Deoksu High School, led by ace Um Jun-sang (18)'s performance, quelled the gust of Yatap High School and became the first winning team in the 2026 national competition.

Deoksu defeated Yatapo 12-6 in the final of the 2026 Shinsegae E-Mart Cup National High School Baseball Tournament at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 12th.

Um Jun-sang, who is considered the No. 1 candidate in the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft to be held in September this year, started as a shortstop and became the winner of the final hit with a thunderous grand slam from his first at-bat. In the seventh inning, he also took the mound and threw a fastball 153.1km/h based on the trackman, finishing the game on his own with one hit, one walk, five strikeouts and one run in three innings.

In this competition, Um Jun-sang proved why he is the No. 1 overall candidate with a 1.69 ERA in four games and one walk and five strikeouts in five ⅓ innings while being recognized by KBO scouts for professional shortstop defense. He also started the 2026 season strong, finishing with a batting average of .304 (0.304).

In addition, third baseman Hong Joo-yong, who showed a good pace in this tournament, hit a two-run timely hit with a fake bunt and slash in the top of the fourth inning, as well as two hits and three RBIs in four at-bats. Hwang Sung-hyun, a third-year center fielder, scored three points on two hits and two walks in three at-bats with an agile defense. Second-year first baseman Lee Yoon-jae impressed scouts with three hits, three RBIs and one run in five at-bats.

First-year catcher Yoon Jeong-chan (16) also showed brilliant performance. Yoon Jung-chan replaced Seol Jae-min (18), the main catcher who left after the first game of the tournament due to a shoulder injury. In the final, he also became the winning catcher by hitting one hit and one RBI from three times at bat, including a large double that hit directly into the right fence

As a result, Deoksu won the 5th E-Mart Cup, including when he was the chairman of the association, his predecessor. It also increased its record of unbeaten national finals, which began in the Golden Lion Flag National High School Baseball Tournament of 2016, to 12 consecutive years. It swept the 2016 Golden Lion Flag National High School Baseball Tournament, Cheongryonggi, 2017 Golden Lion Flag National High School Baseball Tournament, 2019 National Sports Festival, E-Mart Bae in 2020, Bonghwanggi in 2021, E-Mart Bae in 2023, National Sports Festival, E-Mart Bae in 2024, Lee Golden Lion Flag National High School Baseball Tournament in 2025, and E-Mart Bae in 2026.

It was also the 27th national championship. Deoksu High School has won five E-Mart competitions, seven Golden Lion Flag National High School Baseball Tournament competitions, seven Cheongryonggi competitions, two presidential competitions, three Bonghwanggi competitions, and three national competitions. Chung Yoon-jin (55), who took the helm of Deoksu High School in 2007, is also the top of the national championship for the 20th time.

On the other hand, Yatap High School will finish second in the national competition final, which was held for the first time in nine years after winning the Bonghwangdaegi in 2017. Still, since Choi Kyung-hoon (48) took office in 2022, he has solidified his basic skills through a lot of training, achieving meaningful results in the quarterfinals and finals of the national competition in five years.

Even before the start of the tournament, he aimed to reach the quarterfinals in a difficult situation where only three third-year pitchers were allowed to play. On top of that, the tournament was longer than expected, and Park Si-hoo (18) left the final due to the limit on the number of pitches. Lee Won-young (18) and Cho Yeon-hoo (18) and first-year Park Han-yul (16) eventually hit the limit in the final match where they waited. Cho Yeon-hoo collapsed with one hit (one homer) and five walks (four earned runs) in one ⅓ inning, and Lee Won-young pitched all 105 pitches, the limit, and pitched hard with nine hits, three walks, and three strikeouts in six innings.

In the batting lineup, Park Yoo-hwan scored two hits and three points in three at-bats, and Choi Min-young played two hits and two RBIs in four at-bats. Park Min-joon played 1 hit, 2 RBIs and 1 run in 2 at-bats, and at the same time comforted fans with a fantastic center field defense that caught Lee Kun-hoo's ball going over his head in the top of the 3rd inning.

Deoksu High School, led by head coach Jung Yoon-jin, consisted of Choi Soo-wan (2nd baseman), Woo Ik-su (Lee Kun-hoo), Hwang Sung-hyun (middle fielder), Um Jun-sang (striker), Hong Joo-yong (3rd baseman), designated hitter (Jang Tae-yoon), Park Jong-hyuk (left fielder), Lee Yoon-jae (1st baseman) and Yoon Jung-chan (catcher). The starting pitcher is Lee Hwi-young, a second-year left-hander.

Coach Choi Kyung-hoon's yatapo against this was composed of Park Yoo-hwan (left wing), Kim Joo-hyuk (striker), Park Min-joon (middle fielder), Kim Jae-hoon (third baseman), Choi Min-young (fosu), Lee Hyun-joon (right wing), Yang Joon-pyo (designated hitter), Lee Myung-seop (second baseman), and Jung Joon-ho (first baseman). The starting pitcher is Cho Yeon-hoo, a third-year left-hander.

Yatapo suffered from the start as the game was delayed by 18 minutes due to the automatic pitching determination system (ABS) problem. Cho Yeon-hoo, the starting pitcher of Yatap High School who was preparing for the game, had to come down from the mound and warm up his shoulders again.

Deoksu didn't miss the opportunity. Choi Soo-wan walked and Lee Kun-hoo got on base consecutively due to a throwing error by Cho Yeon-hoo, who came out after a sacrifice bunt. Hwang Sung-hyun also drew a walk and loaded the bases with no outs. Here, Um Joon-sang, the "No. 1 overall candidate," hit the bases-loaded shot on the left side. Um Jun-sang passed Cho Yeon-hoo's fastball, which came a little high, out of the left fence. Deoksu's 4-0 lead.

Later, Cho Yeon-hoo, who caught three outcounds with difficulty, failed to score a strike in the second inning and was replaced by Lee Won-young at the first and second bases with one out. He skipped Um Jun-sang with four pitches on purpose and faced Hong Joo-yong, but Hong Joo-yong wiped out the runner with a timely two-run hit in the left-center field.

Deok-Soo also experienced difficulties in controlling the control due to the sudden delay. When the leadoff batters Park Yoo-hwan and Park Min-joon drew a walk in the top of the first inning, coach Jung Yoon-jin boldly put in Kim Kyu-min. Choi Min-young made up for one point by hitting Kim Kyu-min's first pitch and hitting an RBI timely hit that separates left-center. However, Kim Kyu-min struck out Lee Hyun-jun and put out the urgent fire.

In the top of the third inning, center fielder Park Min-joon raised the momentum of Yatago with a defense that admired the broadcasting staff. With two outs and runners on the second and third bases, Lee Kun-hoo's hit flew toward the central fence. Park Min-joon, who was somewhat in front of him, ended the inning by catching a ball flying overhead.

Thanks to that, Yatago made up a point. Leading hitter Park Yoo-hwan got on base with a double to the left fence. Kim Joo-hyuk hit a sacrifice bunt and Park Min-joon hit a sacrifice fly to left field. Yatapo's 2-6 chase.

Deoksu widened the gap with another big inning. In the top of the fourth inning, when leadoff hitter Hwang Sung-hyun walked to base, Um Jun-sang made the first and second bases with no outs with a surprise bunt. Catcher Choi Min-young also failed to throw the ball after being embarrassed as if he did not expect it. Hong Joo-yong then connected with a timely RBI hit to the right with a fake bunt and slash. With Jang Tae-yoon and Park Jong-hyuk grounded out, Lee Yoon-jae made a timely RBI hit in the middle and Yoon Jung-chan made it 10-2 with a large two-run double that hit the right fence.

Yatapo showed why they came to the finals even in a thin player base. In the bottom of the fifth inning, leadoff hitter Park Yoo-hwan's hit to the middle and Kim Joo-hyuk's hit to the left made the first and second bases with no outs. He tried a double steal and the throw missed, making Yatapo make up one point and become a third base with one out. When Park Min-joon had a heavy hit, the third baseman stepped home, and Sun Do-heon's timely RBI hit to the right-center came out, narrowing the gap to 5-10.

In the seventh inning, Um Jun-sang took the mound. Yatapo leadoff hitter Kim Joo-hyuk walked and headed to third base on a subsequent ground ball. Kim Joo-hyuk homered during Choi Min-young's left-handed hit. Yatapo's 6-12 chase. However, with two outs and runners on the first and second bases in the top of the eighth inning, Lee Yun-jae hit a big triple to the right fence to make it 12-6, and when Um Jun-sang did not score an additional run, Deoksu's first win of the 2026 season was born.

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*This content was translated by AI.