In the 7th inning, with no outs and bases loaded, Kim Taek-yeon escaped a scoreless crisis with a 'strikeout-strikeout-ground ball' sequence! Doosan repels Kiwoom's fierce chase, returning to a 1-win, 1-loss start for the weekend series [Gocheok On-Site Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

The Doosan Bears defeated the Kiwoom Heroes, avenging their loss from the previous day (the 3rd). With both teams having split one win each, the winner of the winning series will be decided in the game on the 5th.

Doosan secured an 8-5 victory in a road regular-season game against Kiwoom at Seoul Gocheok Sky Dome on the 4th as part of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League season.

With this win, Doosan improved to 41 wins, 2 ties, and 40 losses. They reclaimed fifth place after Hanwha Eagles, who lost to LG Twins on the same day, dropped from fifth. Meanwhile, last-place Kiwoom failed to maintain their momentum from the previous day's victory, finishing with 29 wins, 1 tie, and 54 losses.

On this day, Doosan set its starting lineup in the following order: Kim Min-seok (left fielder), Son Ah-seop (right fielder), Park Jun-soon (second baseman), Yang Eui-ji (designated hitter), An Jae-seok (third baseman), Park Chan-ho (shortstop), Jung Soobin (center fielder), Yoon Jun-ho (catcher), and Kang Seung-ho (first baseman). Starting pitcher was Choi Seung-yong.

Kiwoom arranged its starting lineup as follows: Seo Geon-chang (second baseman), Choo Jae-hyun (center fielder), Davison (first baseman), Hiura (left fielder), An Chi-hong (designated hitter), Park Chan-hyuk (right fielder), Yeo Dong-wook (third baseman), Kim Dong-heon (catcher), and Kwon Hyuk-bin (shortstop). Starting pitcher was Park Jun-hyun. This marked Davison's first appearance after switching uniforms from NC to Kiwoom.

Doosan took control early by scoring 2 runs in the 3rd inning, 3 runs in the 4th inning, and another 2 runs in the 6th inning.

In the top of the 3rd inning with two outs, Doosan drew walks on the fifth pitch from Son Ah-seop, the fourth pitch from subsequent batter Park Jun-soon, and the seventh pitch from next batter Yang Eui-ji. With bases loaded, An Jae-seok launched a two-run lead-off double down the left-field line, scoring the first run of the game.

In the top of the 4th inning, Doosan added three runs, including a big hit. Again, focus was evident with two outs. Kim Min-seok reached base on an infield single to right field and scored on Son Ah-seop's sacrifice fly to left-center field. Next batter Park Jun-soon then hit a two-run home run over the left-field wall, extending the lead to 5-0.

In the top of the 6th inning, Doosan added two more runs. Leadoff batter Yoon Jun-ho reached base on a walk and scored on Kang Seung-ho's sacrifice fly to left field. Kim Min-seok flew out to left field. On Son Ah-seop's infield grounder to first base, Kang Seung-ho advanced to third base, and Park Jun-soon hit a sacrifice fly to right-center field for three runs. The score extended to 7-0.

However, Kiwoom's counterattack was fierce immediately after. They scored four runs in the bottom of the 6th inning to erase the deficit. With one out, Im Ji-yeol drew a walk and advanced to third base on Davison's double down the left-field line. Doosan then replaced starting pitcher Choi Seung-yong with Park Chi-guk.

But Park Chi-guk struggled. He issued a walk to Hiura, loading the bases, and allowed a sacrifice fly to An Chi-hong. Then, a sacrifice fly by Park Chan-hyuk followed, and with two outs, Kim Dong-heon hit a two-run double down the left-field line, cutting the deficit to 7-4 in an instant—a three-run rally.

In the bottom of the 7th inning against Lee Yong-chan, leadoff batter Seo Geon-chang reached base on a double to right-center field, and subsequent batter Im Ji-yeol was hit by a pitch. Next batter was Davison. After throwing a ball on the first pitch, Doosan's bench immediately made a move—a bold substitution while the at-bat was in progress. The pitcher who took over the mound was Kim Taek-yeon.

However, Kim Taek-yeon also struggled with control. He issued three consecutive walks, loading the bases with no outs. Nevertheless, Kim struck out Hiura on a 6th-pitch outside fastball (153 km/h) with a swing-and-miss strikeout, and followed by striking out An Chi-hong on a 6th-pitch outside fastball (152 km/h) with another swing-and-miss strikeout. He then induced Park Chan-hyuk into an infield grounder to shortstop on the fourth pitch, escaping the bases-loaded crisis without allowing any runs.

Doosan added one more run in the top of the 8th inning to pull away. Against reliever Lee Jun-woo, Kang Seung-ho and Kim Min-seok drew consecutive walks, then advanced further on Jo Su-hyung's sacrifice bunt. Park Jun-soon then scored a run on a sacrifice fly to center field. The score became 8-4.

In the bottom of the 8th inning with one out and no runners, Kim Dong-heon hit a solo home run over the left-center field wall. Subsequently, Oh Seon-jin's single to left field, Im Ji-yeol's single to center field, and Davison being hit by a pitch loaded the bases with two outs, but Hiura flew out to center field against Lee Young-ha, leaving them with regret. Ultimately, Doosan kept Lee Young-ha on the mound in the bottom of the 9th inning and secured the victory to close out the game.

Doosan starter Choi Seung-yong pitched 5⅓ innings, allowing three hits and two walks while striking out seven batters, giving up two earned runs, earning his second win (with seven losses) of the season. In contrast, Park Jun-hyun pitched 3⅔ innings, allowing five hits and six walks while striking out six batters, giving up five earned runs, taking the loss for his fourth defeat (one win) of the season without completing four innings. Doosan's lineup recorded nine total hits, with Park Jun-soon leading the charge with three hits, including one home run and one triple. Kiwoom recorded ten total hits, with Seo Geon-chang and Kim Dong-heon contributing multi-hit performances.

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*This content was translated by AI.