From Brian in Jeollanam-do we get this story about steroids in the KBO. Again, anyone who needs to cheat to play in the KBO needs to find a new line of work. Personally, I think this is just an attempt by Ma Hae-yeong to sell a few books. Honestly, I'll probably buy it, take two months to muddle my way through it and post a review long after the Korean press has had their say.
Aaron at the EWC gives last night's events in Busan a solid write-up with pictures. Jerry Royster was tossed, well, for not much of a reason at all.
We get a reasonably competent article from the Korea Times today on .400 hitters and homerun hitters in the KBO. The money quote comes from Choi's trainer, ``In addition, since he lost more than 10 kilograms, his body condition is excellent. He has also avoided injury. That part is very inspired,'' added Park. I realize this is translated and that's not why I'm making fun of it. It was fairly well known that Choi had a problem with snack foods. I'm guessing not eating 10 cups of ramyon a day probably helped with his weight loss. I'm inspired to do the same.
On to the roundup...
Doosan 11, Lotte 3
W - Goh Chang-seong (2-1), L - Lee Sang-hwa (0-1)
Lotte is a mess right now. They don't have any pitching, except for Jon Adkins in the 9th, but they don't really have a reliable way of getting to him. They also miss Son Min-han more than they thought they would. Gee, really, a guy that gives you 180+ innings each year was important? Adkins should've been used as a starter once the Giants realized Son was going to miss the first half of the year. This game fell apart right after Lee Sang-hwa had to exit due to elbow troubles in the 6th inning. The Lotte bullpen was pummelled for 7 runs in the 4 innings of work. Doosan stars Kim Hyeon-su and Kim Dong-joo are absolutely locked in right now. It's like they're feeding on each other's at bats. Kim Hyeon-su finished the game 2-3 with a homer, 1 RBI and one run scored. Kim Dong-joo went 3-5 with 2 doubles, 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored. Doosan starter Hong Sang-nam gave the Bears a quality start. Hong tossed 5 2/3 innings(95 pitches, 59 strikes). For any other team that wouldn't be impressive, but Doosan is notorious for giving its starters an early hook. Hong allowed 3 runs on 3 hits, 2 walks and 1 hit batsman. He also struck out 6 and surrendered a 2-run bomb to Lotte slugger Lee Dae-ho.
Hanhwa 4, Seoul Heroes 2
W - Yang Hoon (1-3), L - Ma Il-yeong (2-5), S - Brad Thomas (5)
Heroes ace Ma Il-yeong has had a tough year and his latest start is just another chapter in that story. Ma tossed 6 1/3 innings(87 pitches, 56 strikes), but surrendered 4 runs, all earned. He allowed 9 hits and 2 walks while striking out 4. With the score tied 2-2 in the 7th inning, Hanhwa put runners on the corners with no one out. Hanhwa center fielder Kang Dong-woo hit a chopper back to the pitcher. The ball hit the top of Ma Il-yeong's glove and bounced away from him. The runner from 3rd scored and everyone else was safe. The next batter, 2nd baseman Lee Yeo-sang hit a chopper past Heroes 3rd baseman Hwang Jae-gyun to load the bases for Kim Tae-won. Kim hit a grounder back to the pitcher. Ma threw home to record the force out at the plate. Heroes catcher Kim Dong-su fired the ball to first for the double play, but the throw was offline. Kang Dong-woo never broke stride rounding 3rd and headed for the plate. The Heroes 1st baseman fired the ball home, but Kang came in under the tag to give Hanhwa a 4-2 advantage. Hanhwa closer Brad Thomas threw a scoreless 9th inning to earn the save.
SK 3, Samsung 2
W - Goh Hyo-joon (4-2), L - Ahn Ji-man (2-3), S - Jeong Woo-ram (1)
This one stung a little, but between the Lions and my beloved White Sox, I'm starting to become numb to the losing. This game did feature some of the worst relay throws I have ever seen in professional baseball. SK held a slim 2-1 lead in the 5th inning. With a runner on 3rd and 1 out, catcher Park Kyeong-wan hit a flyball to shallow center. The run would not have scored, but Samsung centerfielder Park Han-yi chose to fire the ball into the catcher anyway. The ball bounced off of catcher Jin Kab-yong's shin guard and ricocheted to the screen behind home plate. The run was able to score on this bonehead play and SK got a much needed insurance run. Then with the bases loaded in the 8th, Samsung pinch hitter Yang Joon-hyeok hits a fly ball to shallow right. The run might've scored, but the throw from SK right fielder Park Jae-sang was about 10 feet over the head of the catcher and twenty feet to his right. The run scored easily to make it a 3-2 ballgame. It was nice to see Ahn Ji-man have a quality start. There's something about that kid, I tells ya. Ahn tossed 6 1/3 innings(83 pitches, 48 strikes) of 3-run baseball. He allowed 4 hits and 3 walks while striking out 2.
KIA 6, LG 0
W - Kwak Jeong-cheol (3-0), L - Bong Jung-geun (3-5)
If KIA can get consistent pitching from a rotation without Yoon Seok-min, they'll make the playoffs. KIA starter Kwak Jeong-cheol threw 5 shutout innings(88 pitches, 47 strikes). He allowed only 3 hits and 4 walks while striking out 2. KIA infielder Kim Sang-hyeon hit a 2-run double in the 1st inning to give KIA a 2-0 advantage. The amazing part? Choi Hee-seop scored from first and he DIDN'T need an oxygen mask and no one fell down. KIA also stole 5 bases in this one while hitting 0 homers. What would the odds of that have been before the game? 200-1? 300-1? LG ace Bong Jung-geun was fairly mediocre. Bong needed 80 pitches to record 9 outs. He allowed 5 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks while striking out 4.
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