The Kia Tigers wrote a thrilling comeback story.
The Tigers gave up a three-run homer to Song Sung-moon in the eighth inning of the '2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League' against the Kiwoom Heroes at the Gwangju-Kia Champions Field on Sunday, but came back with a five-run big inning, including a Socratic two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth, to win 8-4.
With the win, Doosan returned to the top five. Doosan lost to KT to move into fifth place.
The game was a tightly contested affair as KIA had chances early on, but couldn't find the cohesion to capitalize. Kia got off to a rough start in the first inning with Park Chan-ho walking and stealing and Choi Won-joon walking and stealing. They were stranded at the plate by Kiwoom catcher Kim Dong-heon. The game seemed to take a turn for the worse.
In the bottom of the second inning, leadoff hitter Na Sung-beom singled and Choi Hyung-woo drew a walk. Socrates hit a rolling single to right field to lead off the inning, but Choi Jung-yong and Park Chan-ho struck out with the bases loaded.
Kiwoom also went on the offensive. In the top of the third inning, Lee Ju-hyung led off with a single and was followed by a bunt single from Jeon Byung-woo. After Lee stole third, Lee Yong-gyu brought him in with a single to left field to tie the game at 1-1.
KIA immediately responded in the top of the third. Leadoff hitter Park Chan-ho hit a double down the right field line and scored on Na Sung-beom's fly to right field in the ensuing at-bat. However, they were unable to capitalize as Choi Jung-yong singled with runners on first and second in the fourth and Kim Do-young doubled with runners on first and second in the fifth.
Kiwoom's offense stumbled in the sixth inning. Kim Dong-heon led off with a single and reached first on an error by the third baseman, and Lee Yong-gyu followed with a single to center to put runners on first and second. Kim Hye-sung followed with a single to center. It was a hit that could have tied the game, but Kim Dong-heon, the runner at second base, took off for third base and turned back.
The third base coach suddenly stopped him as he turned his arm. The first baseman, Lee Yong-kyu, saw the third base coach turn his arm and ran all the way to third base. With no outs, runners were on first and second and third. Dawson struck out and Kim Hwijip flied out to shortstop to end the threat.
After escaping the crisis, KIA took another step forward in the bottom of the sixth inning. Leadoff hitter Na Sung-beom led off with a double. Choi Hyung-woo's straight hit went into the second baseman's glove for a double. It looked like the inning was over, but the next batter, Socrates, hit a solo shot to the right-center field home run zone to make it 3-1.
Kiwoom turned the tide with a single run in the eighth inning. Lee Yong-kyu drew a walk and Dawson followed with a single to left. Two batters later, Song Sung-moon lined a changeup from Lim Ki-young for a three-run shot over the right field fence. It was a single that made it 4-3. The first winning series of August was finally in sight.
But Kia didn't back down. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Choi Hyung-woo drew a walk to keep the spark alive. Pinch-hitter Hong Jong-pyo stole second on the catcher's foil, and Socrates hit a two-run shot over the right-center field fence off Kim Sung-jin to make it 5-4. It was his fourth home run in as many at-bats.
KIA didn't stop there. After Lee Chang-jin singled and Kim Tae-gyun walked to put runners on second and third, Park Chan-ho drove in a run with an infield single. After Choi Won-joon drew a walk, Kim Do-young hit an RBI double to seal the deal. It was a big five-run inning.
Panoni stayed on the mound until the top of the eighth. He allowed three runs on six hits with two walks and five strikeouts. He struck out the side with runners on first and second, but a three-run home run by Im Ki-young behind him cost him the win. Im Ki-young was hit by a pitch, but she rebounded to earn the save. Jung Hae-young pitched the ninth inning to save the game.
Jang pitched six innings, allowing seven hits (one home run), five walks, four strikeouts, and three runs (one earned). He had runners on base in every inning, but he kept the damage to a minimum and did his job as a starter. On the 11th against Jamsil LG Electronics, he made his sixth consecutive start for the second game in a row. Kiwoom was disappointed that Kim Sung-jin gave up five runs in the eighth inning. It was a game that once again exposed the weakness of the bullpen. 파워볼