"Ah! Even the chance to turn the tide with two outs and bases loaded in the bottom of the 7th has vanished." South Korea's U-23 baseball team suffers a narrow 2-4 defeat to Australia, falling in all four Super Round matches... The glory of the 2022 runner-up finish was not repeated.

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

They did not give up until the very end, but ultimately failed to turn the game around. The South Korean Under-23 (U-23) baseball national team lost to Australia after failing to capitalize on a go-ahead opportunity with two outs and bases loaded in the top of the 7th inning. South Korea, which had traveled to Nicaragua dreaming of its first-ever championship, now has only one final match remaining to escape last place.

The South Korean U-23 baseball national team, led by Manager Lee Yeon-soo (63, Sungkyunkwan University), lost 2-4 to Australia in the second Super Round match of the 6th World Baseball Classic held on the 14th (KST) at the Estadio Nacional Soberanía in Managua, Nicaragua.

With this result, South Korea's record in the Super Round stands at four losses, including the two defeats carried over from the Opening Round. The team remains in last place, 6th out of six nations, and has also been eliminated from contention for the 3rd-4th place playoff.

In this tournament, South Korea aimed to surpass its runner-up finish in 2022 and challenge for its first-ever title. Manager Lee Yeon-soo, who had led South Korea to the final at that time, took the helm again, assembling a national team composed of professional prospects and university players. Young pitchers joined forces, including Won Jong-hyuk (21, Hanwha), who throws fastballs up to 158 km/h, LG's rookie left-hander Park Jun-seong (19), and Park Ji-ho (23), who led the Futures League in holds while serving in the military.

The start was promising. In the first Opening Round game against Cuba, South Korea won 3-2 in a walk-off tiebreaker in the bottom of the 8th inning. Won Jong-hyuk pitched brilliantly for two scoreless innings with five strikeouts, and captain Kim Seong-u (23, military) drew a walk-off bases-loaded walk. However, they suffered a painful comeback loss to Japan. Park Jun-seong pitched well for four scoreless innings with five strikeouts, and South Korea led 5-2 through the top of the 8th inning in extra innings, but allowed four runs in the bottom of the 8th to fall 5-6.

After also losing to Venezuela, South Korea defeated the United Kingdom (3-0) and South Africa (7-0) in succession to advance to the Super Round with a record of three wins and two losses. In the game against South Africa, Park Ji-ho performed well for three scoreless innings with seven strikeouts.

However, they struggled to find their footing in the upper round. They lost 1-6 to Taiwan in the first Super Round match the previous day. They were once again shut down by Taiwanese pitcher Lin Yi-wei, who had troubled South Korea's lineup at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games last September. Lin Yi-wei stifled the South Korean offense for six innings, allowing two hits with six strikeouts and one unearned run.

In the game against Australia as well, South Korea lost control early in the game. Starting pitcher Lee Do-u (20, SSG) allowed a single to right field after one out in the bottom of the 1st inning, then gave up a two-run home run to third batter John Lem. In the bottom of the 3rd, consecutive hits and a wild pitch put them in a jam with one out and runners on second and third, and they allowed an additional run on Max Stagg's grounder, falling behind 0-3. Lee Do-u is a promising pitcher who had earned the win in the previous game against the United Kingdom, pitching 4⅔ innings with one hit allowed, eight strikeouts, and no runs scored. However, he failed to stop the long balls from the Australian lineup on this day.

The South Korean lineup also failed to capitalize on opportunities. Kang Seong-u (21, military) recorded hits in the 1st and 4th innings, and Kim Seung-ju (21, Hanyang University) reached base on a hit in the 3rd inning, but follow-up hits did not come. In the bottom of the 5th, they gave up another right-field solo home run to Lem, extending the deficit to 0-4. The crisis with runners on first and third continued, but relief pitcher Won Jong-hyuk held all inherited runners at bay, preventing any further runs.

South Korea launched a counterattack in the top of the final 7th inning. After one out, Kim Seong-u was hit by a pitch, followed by consecutive walks by Yang Hyeon-jong (20, Kiwoom) and Lee Won-joon (20, SSG), loading the bases. Here, Kim Seung-ju hit an RBI single to right field, reclaiming one run. Then, pinch hitter Lee Seo-jun's (19, Samsung) powerful drive was caught by the Australian center fielder in a great play, but it connected as a sacrifice fly, narrowing the gap to 2-4.

The opportunity continued with two outs and bases loaded after Kim Geon (19, NC) reached base on a hit by pitch. However, the game ended when Kang Seong-u's well-hit ball, who had recorded two hits in previous at-bats that day, was caught in front of the left-field fence.

South Korea lost 0-3 to Japan in this tournament in 2022, finishing as runner-up, and placed 5th in 2024. This time, they aimed for a return to the final after four years, but failed to secure a medal after suffering consecutive losses in the Super Round.

What remains is the determination of the final standings. South Korea will play its last Super Round match against Puerto Rico at 3:00 a.m. on the 15th (KST). A win would see them overtake Puerto Rico, who would also finish with one win and four losses, under the head-to-head rule to place 5th; a loss would end their tournament in 6th place. The game will be broadcast live on SPOTV Prime and SPOTV NOW.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original