The Lotte Giants started their four-game stretch on the road with a win, defeating the Kiwoom Heroes 8-5 on Tuesday. The win was their seventh against the Heroes this year, kicking off a two-game series from the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea.
The win saw the Giants get ahead by six runs in the first two innings, earning the team a lead that the Heroes could not overtake. The six runs came against Kim Jae-woong, the starting pitcher for the Heroes in the game.
The short but also damaging performance from Kim gave him his third loss of 2020, moving his record to 0-3. The game was his sixth start of the season, with his 30 other appearances coming as a reliever.
Giants Score Six
The first run for the Giants came early, as a hit in the first inning from Jeon Jun-woo scored a run.
The five-run rally in the second started with a hit from Kim Joon-tae into left field scoring a run. In the next at-bat, An Chi-hong took home two more with a hit into the outfield.
The scoring in the inning finished with a bang, as Jung Hoon hit a two-run home run to make the game 6-0. Jung moved his tally of 2020 RBIs to 45 with the play.
Heroes Score Runs Against Kim, Who Wins Game
The Heroes started to score in the third inning. Loading up the bases, Noh Kyung-eun walked home a run.
After Park Joon-tae drove home a run in the fourth inning, Noh was pulled from the game. Reliever Kim Geon-guk took his place, completing the inning.
While Kim was still on the mound an inning later, a ground ball from Addison Russell allowed a runner to get home, making the game 6-3.
Continuing through to the end of the fifth inning, Kim’s performance was enough to be given the win on the mound. The win was his second of the year through 18 performances.
Late Runs From Both Teams
The Giants got back on the board in the sixth, scoring two more runs to extend their lead. Kim and An picked up more RBIs in the game in the inning. After a sacrifice fly from Kim drove home a runner, a hit into the outfield from An allowed Dixon Machado to hustle from second base to home.
Late runs for the Heroes came in the eighth, as the team put down two runs. A double from Park Joon-tae scored the first run, driving home a runner who was on first base. A hit from Kim Ha-seong scored Park to make the game 8-5.
Earning his 16th save of the season, Giants player Kim Won-joong pitched the ninth inning for the team.
Wednesday To Be Final Giants-Heroes 2020 Meeting
The Heroes will host the Giants one more time, with the teams set to play at 6:30PM KST (5:30AM EDT) on Wednesday. The matchup will be the last between the teams in the 2020 season.
Around The KBO
Getting ahead early with three runs, the Doosan Bears kept their lead to defeat the NC Dinos 7-3.
In a pitching performance lead by David Buchanan, the Samsung Lions picked up a shutout 7-0 win over the KT Wiz.
Scoring numerous runs including an eight-run rally in the fourth inning, the SK Wyverns won 16-1 against the Kia Tigers on Tuesday.
A tied game ended in unusual fashion, as Jung Jin-ho getting hit by a pitch in the 10th inning forced a run home, giving the Hanhwa Eagles an upset 6-5 win against the LG Twins.
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