Shock: "We will win the championship," yet a 7-8 comeback loss to Australia in the opener... Red flag raised for the finals [APBC Review]

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Although they set out with the goal of winning the championship, Korea was tripped up by Australia right from the start. The team is now in a situation where it must defeat both Japan and Taiwan in the remaining two games to advance to the finals.

Korea, led by manager Choi Won-ho, suffered a 7-8 comeback loss against Australia in the first preliminary match of the 2026 Asia Pro Baseball Championship (APBC) held at Tokyo Dome in Japan on the 12th.

Of the four teams participating in this tournament, only the top two will advance to the finals. Having already suffered one loss, Korea is in a position where it must win both its match against Japan on the 12th and its match against Taiwan on the 14th (both at 7 p.m.).

Attention focused on the starting lineup. The national team fielded Kim Ju-won (shortstop), Kim Do-young (third baseman), Ahn Hyun-min (designated hitter), Han Dong-hee (first baseman), Moon Hyun-bin (right fielder), Kim Hwi-jip (second baseman), Park Jae-hyun (center fielder), Jo Hyung-woo (catcher), and Kim Min-seok (left fielder) as its starting lineup.

Australia countered with Jaylin Ray (center fielder), Alex Hall (catcher), Brent Airdale (third baseman), Chris Burke (right fielder), Blake Cavel (first baseman), Max Derrington (left fielder), Clayton Campbell (designated hitter), Jaiden Kim (shortstop), and Byron Armstrong (second baseman). Adam Bates was the starting pitcher.

The start by starting pitcher Kim Min-jun was disappointing. After retiring leadoff batter Ray with a flyout to center field, Kim Min-jun issued a walk to Hall and struck out Airdale, but then walked Burke again. The two walks proved disastrous. Cavel's drive extended into the gap between right and center field before clearing the fence for a three-run home run.

Kim Min-jun retired all three batters in the second inning, but allowed a double and a walk in the top of the third. With one out, he was eventually replaced by Jo Dong-wook. Although Jo Dong-wook gave up an RBI hit, he handled the next two batters well to prevent further runs.

The offensive slump was also painful. In the bottom of the second inning with two outs, Kim Hwi-jip hit a double, but no additional hits came through the fourth inning.

The frustrating flow reversed in the bottom of the sixth. Trailing 0-4, Kim Ji-chan, who entered as a pinch hitter for Jo Hyung-woo, started things off with a double to left field. Following that, Heo In-seo, who came in as a pinch hitter for Kim Min-seok, struck out, but Kim Ju-won hit a two-run home run over the left-field fence, pulling Korea closer in the chase.

After Kim Do-young struck out, Ahn Hyun-min reached on a walk, and Han Dong-hee and Moon Hyun-bin followed with consecutive walks to load the bases. Then, Kim Hwi-jip, who came to bat next, hit a three-RBI go-ahead double that smashed directly into the right-field fence. Korea took an instant 5-4 lead.

Following that, Park Jae-hyun hit a single to right field, and Kim Hwi-jip raced past third base all the way to home plate. It was an out timing play, but he avoided the catcher's tag, and the umpire called him safe. Australia requested a video review, but the result did not change. It was confirmed that Kim Hwi-jip had touched home plate cleverly while dodging the catcher's tag.

Park Jeong-min, who took the mound in the top of the sixth, also pitched in the seventh and eighth innings, but a defensive error proved costly. Kim Hwi-jip failed to field Cavel's ground ball to second base cleanly, and with one out and a runner on first, Campbell hit a two-run home run to tie the game.

In the bottom of the eighth inning with two outs, Kim Hwi-jip came to bat and reached second base following an error on the throw by the opposing team after reaching first, but Park Jae-hyun flied out to center field, squandering the chance for a go-ahead run.

In the top of the ninth inning, things finally fell apart. Choi Jun-yong gave up a single to left field to Hall, and then with one out and a runner on first, Burke hit a large double into the gap between right and center field, allowing Australia to take a 7-6 lead. After recording another out, Choi Jun-yong also allowed Derrington an RBI double, widening the gap to two runs.

Subsequently, Choi Jun-yong took the mound again (Note: Source text repeats Choi Jun-yong here, likely referring to a different pitcher or a typo in source, but translating faithfully). He gave up a double to Kim but retired the next two batters with groundouts to end the inning.

Sung Young-tak came on and chose an automatic intentional walk against Campbell, then issued a walk to Kim, creating a bases-loaded crisis with two outs. However, Kim Do-young fielded Armstrong's line drive well, dragging the game into the bottom of the ninth.

With one out, Heo In-seo drew a walk, and Kim Ju-won, who had hit the two-run home run earlier, smashed a large double over the center fielder's head. Runner Heo In-seo advanced to third base. In a situation where a single would have tied the game, Kim Do-young hit a sacrifice fly to right field. The runner from third scored.

However, Ahn Hyun-min grounded out to the infield, and the game ended in defeat as it stood.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original