A dramatic win with a drama. The Kia Tigers rallied from two outs in the top of the ninth inning to win the game.
Kia Tigers won the final game of their three-game weekend series against the Kiwoom Heroes of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League 4-3 at the Gocheok Sky Dome on Monday. The win snapped a three-game losing streak and allowed the team to become the first of the 10 clubs to reach the 60-win plateau. Their season record is 60 wins, 2 draws, and 38 losses.
It was dramatic, literally. Kia was down 2-3 with two outs in the top of the ninth inning. The mood was further dampened when Choi Hyung-woo (grounder to second base) and Socrates Brito (swinging strikeout) were retired without results.
Still, they didn’t give up until the end. The Kia players tried with all their might to win the game until the last out, and their efforts paid off, giving them the come-from-behind victory.
It started with Choi Won-joon in the top of the eighth inning. With Kia trailing 0-3 in the top of the eighth, Choi hit a two-run home run (his eighth of the season) off Yang Ji-yul to make it a 2-3 game. In the top of the ninth inning, the real drama began. Two batters later, Kim Sun-bin hit a solo home run (No. 8 of the season) off Kim Sung-min to tie the game at 3-3. The next batter, Byun Woo-hyuk, followed suit with a solo shot (No. 2 of the season) to take a 4-3 lead. Lim Ki-young then closed out the bottom of the ninth to secure the win. Starting pitcher Yang Hyun-jong went six innings, allowing three runs (unearned) on four hits with three strikeouts and one walk. A fielding error led to an unearned run, but the ace did his job and didn’t falter.
After the game, Kia head coach Lee Bum-ho said, “We were able to get a valuable win because the players didn’t give up until the end of the game. Down 0-3, Choi Won-joon’s two-run home run in 온라인카지노사이트 the top of the eighth inning kept our hopes alive, and two batters later in the top of the ninth, Kim Sun-bin’s tying home run and Byun Woo-hyuk’s game-winning home run put the finishing touches on a hard-fought game. Both Kim Sun-bin and Byun Woo-hyuk were aggressive with their swings, and I think it paid off in the end,” said Kim after the win.
“On the mound, Yang Hyun-jong didn’t get the win, but he pitched six innings of no-hit ball to set the stage for the late comeback. The bullpen of Kwak Do-gyu, Lee Joon-young, and Lim Ki-young also made a big contribution to the team’s victory by pitching scoreless innings, especially Lim Ki-young, who closed the game perfectly in a one-run game.”
Kia avoided a sweep in the series against Kiwoom. The team lost the first day (4-5 on the 26th) and the next day (5-6 on the 27th) to clinch the series, but prevented the fire from spreading. “We’re happy to finish the week with a 5% win rate,” said Lee. The players did a great job, and I’d like to thank the fans for their support throughout the three-game series.”
After the trip to Gochuk, KIA will return home to Gwangju’s KIA Champions Field for a three-game midweek series against the Doosan Bears.