A tied game went the way of the Hanhwa Eagles late on Thursday, scoring three runs in the eighth inning to defeat the Lotte Giants 7-4. The game opened a two-game series hosted by the Eagles at the Hanwha Life Eagles Park in Daejeon, South Korea.
The deciding runs all came from a singular play, as a hit from Lim Jong-chan allowed three base runners to get home. While three runners scored, Lim was tagged out after attempting to reach third base.
The loss for the game went to reliever Choi Jun-yong, who was responsible for the first two batters who got on base and were later driven home.
Eagles Get Ahead Early
Earlier in the game, the two teams traded blows, eventually being tied at 4-4.
The Eagles got ahead by four runs before the Giants started to score. The first run came early, as Brandon Barnes hit a solo home run.
The team scored three more in the fourth inning of play after hits from Noh Si-hwan, Choi Jae-hoon, Choi Jin-haeng and Noh Soo-kwang scored runs.
The runs came against starting pitcher Park Se-woong, who was pulled after five innings of play.
Giants Put Down Four To Tie
The Giants started to answer back in the fourth inning, as a sacrifice fly ball from Jung Hoon scored a runner.
The team tied the game up an inning later. The first of the three runs in the fifth inning came off the bat of Dixon Machado, who brought a runner home with a hit. Eagles starter Warwick Saupold was pulled after the batter that followed Machado.
Brought in with bases loaded, reliever Kim Jong-soo was able to close the inning. However, he could not do so before allowing two more runs to score, tying the game at 4-4.
Kim forced a run home after walking Oh Yoon-suk. A fielder’s choice play allowed Machado to score before the inning ended.
Eagles To Host Giants on Friday
The second game between the Eagles and Giants will be played on Friday, with the first pitch scheduled for 6:30PM KST (5:30AM EDT).
Around The KBO
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