In the most grand of battles possible in baseball, the Kia Tigers exchanged home runs with the Lotte Giants, prevailing in the end with a score of 7-3. The win came at the home park for the Tigers, the Gwangju Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, Korea.
Tigers Get Last Laugh In Home Run Derby
It took one pitch for the Tigers to get ahead, with the first pitch from starter Park Se-woong being drilled by Kim Ho-ryeong for a home run.
The game went back to even in the fifth, with Giants player Kim Joon-tae hitting a ball past the right-field wall.
The home run battle carried into the sixth inning, with Giants first-baseman Lee Dae-ho hitting a solo shot that put them ahead 2-1.
Making the biggest splash of them all was a three-run home run shot by Yoo Min-sang in the bottom of the sixth, putting the Tigers in the lead again with a score of 4-2.
Insurance runs came in the seventh inning, with hits from Yoo Min-sang and Han Seung-taek bringing in runs. The Giants brought in three different pitchers in the inning in an attempt to finish the frame.
Kim Dae-woo played the eighth for the Giants, earning three outs with only eight pitches.
Starters Handed Loss and Win Respectively After Six
Both starting pitchers left the game after the sixth inning. Tigers pitcher, Im Ki-young, was given the win for the game, allowing two runs and seven hits in his appearance.
Getting his fourth loss of the year, Park Se-woong moved to 0-4 in four appearances, giving up four runs and nine hits.
A joint pitching performance from Tigers relievers Park Joon-pyo, Jeon Sang-hyun and Hong Sang-sam in the later innings kept the Giants hitless.
Tigers Remain Perfect Against Giants
The Tigers continue to be the biggest challenge for the Giants this season, failing to earn a win in now four games against them. Two more games will be played in this series, with the next one starting at 6:30PM KST (5:30AM EDT) on Wednesday.
Around The KBO
The Samsung Lions got a quick jump on the LG Twins in the first inning, getting two runs. After that, no more scoring happened, as the teams garnered only 11 hits altogether.
A rough four innings from NC Dinos starter Lee Jae-hak did enough to secure the SK Wyverns a 8-2 win. Being their fifth win in a row, the Wyverns could move up from their ninth place spot in the KBO if they continue their winning pattern this week.
Giving star pitcher Odrisaimer Despaigne his first loss of the season, 2019 KBO Champions Doosan Bears started their week with an 11-8 win against the KT Wiz.
The Hanhwa Eagles struggled immesely agains the Kiwoom Heroes, losing a 15-3 game. The team struggled to find it’s footing in pitching, with five of their six pitchers giving up at least one run.
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