*This content was translated by AI.
The baseball national team, aiming for a fifth consecutive Asian Games title, has completed its final rehearsal. While it left some concerns regarding left-handed pitchers, it was also a final rehearsal that yielded definite gains.
Led by manager Ryu Ji-hyun (55), the Korean baseball national team secured a 7-6 walk-off victory in an extra-inning tiebreaker during a practice game against the Army team (representing the Ministry of National Defense) at Gocheok Sky Dome in Guro-gu, Seoul, on the 17th to prepare for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
The national team lined up its batting order as follows: Kim Do-young (third baseman), Moon Hyun-bin (left fielder), Noh Si-hwan (first baseman), Moon Bo-kyung (designated hitter), Kim Ju-won (shortstop), Park Jun-soon (second baseman), Jo Hyung-woo (catcher), Park Jae-hyun (right fielder), and Kim Ji-chan (center fielder).
Using Kim Do-young as the leadoff batter was key, and Park Jun-soon (Doosan), who has been struggling recently, drew attention by being named in the starting lineup.
Evaluating the pitching staff was also crucial. The team entered the game with a plan to use all eight pitchers except Kwak Bin and Choi Min-seok (both from Doosan) and So Hyoung-jun (KT), giving each one inning. This decision aimed to maintain game sharpness without overexerting the pitchers while gathering insights on their usage potential.
There were lingering regrets on the mound. Starting pitcher Oh Won-seok, who took the mound in the top of the first inning, allowed four consecutive hits and gave up two runs. It was fortunate that Lee Seung-hyun recorded three consecutive outs via a strikeout and Park Gwan-woo induced a double play, preventing further runs.
After Young Woo Kim held the line with three consecutive outs in the second inning, the batting lineup saw Park Jun-soon (Doosan) launch a powerful extra-base hit. In the bottom of the second with one out, Park faced Kim Dae-ho and drove a large ball across center-right field. The defense failed to make a clean play, allowing Park to reach third base after passing second. He then scored on a shortstop grounder by Jo Hyung-woo.
However, another left-handed pitcher, Bae Chan-seung (Samsung), who entered in the third inning, collapsed. After allowing one run on three consecutive hits, he surrendered an additional run via a large sacrifice fly to center field by Park Han-gyeol. He also gave up an infield hit to Lee Seung-hyun and a large double to Park Gwan-woo.
Although he allowed three runs over one inning and faced continuous trouble, the agreed-upon limit of 30 pitches for Jeong Han-dae-ro (CEO) team pitchers was reached, automatically ending his inning and preventing further runs.
The subsequent pitchers were flawless. Sung Young-tak (KIA) pitched the fourth inning, Jo Byung-hyun (SSG) the fifth, and Kim Jin-wook (Lotte), who transformed into a bullpen pitcher, entered in the sixth and shut down the inning with another perfect frame.
Good news came from the batting lineup in the bottom of the sixth. Following an infield hit by Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha) and a walk by Kim Ju-won, Kim Geon-hee (Kiwoom) also drew a walk with two outs and runners on first and second. Then Yoon Dong-hee (Lotte), who had been suffering from severe batting slumps this season, appeared as a pinch hitter. He delivered a clean hit to right field, cutting the deficit by two runs.
Park Young-hyun (KT) held off the seventh inning top, and the bottom of the seventh ended without scoring, leading to the scheduled tiebreaker in the eighth. Choi Jun-yong (Lotte) took the mound. With no outs and runners on first and second, Jung Hyun-seung's bunt hit popped up, which Kim Geon-hee fielded for an out. He then overpowered Jang Jae-young, who had recorded two hits that day, with a ground ball to the infield. He also forced Lee Yul-ye into a 0-2 count with aggressive pitching and recorded a swing-and-miss strikeout on a high fastball to end the inning.
The national team's situation was not favorable either. Starting from pinch hitter Jung Jun-jae (SSG)'s at-bat, a bunt hit popped up weakly, just like in the Army game, and was caught by the catcher. However, an infield hit to right field by Kim Ju-won (NC) followed by consecutive doubles from Park Jun-soon and Kim Geon-hee allowed the team to score four runs during the tiebreaker alone, securing a walk-off victory.
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*This content was translated by AI.
