6/23 Roundup and News

Choi Hee-seop hit a homerun. This only becomes news when you've been in a massive slump.

According to the Joongang Daily, 5 teams are still in contention for the last playoff spot. The gentleman who wrote this hasn't seen much of Hanhwa this season.

The Joongang Daily also gives us a fluff piece on embattled Heroes starter Kim Su-kyeong. Let me know when his ERA is under 9. Then we can start talking about how he "looks like a new man."

Finally, KoreaBeat posted this pic of Lee Dae-ho proposing to his girlfriend over the weekend. She said yes.

On to the roundup...

Heroes 11, LG 8
W - Jeon Joon-ho(1-0), L - Jeong Chan-heon (5-1)

The Heroes simply outslugged LG yesterday. There was no finesse. No nuances. Just a clubbing and hoping the other guy didn't have a bigger club. Heroes catcher Kang Gui-tae(.275/.340/.362) was brought in for starter Heo Joon(.260/.304/.320) in the early innings. I guess he was well-rested. Kang finished 2-3 with a double, a homer, 5 RBI and 3 runs scored. His homer was a 2-run bomb in the 4th inning. His double came with the bases loaded in the 5th inning. He cleared them and gave the Heroes a 7-6 lead. Heroes outfielder Doug Clark(.291/.381/.454) finished 2-5 with a homer, 3 RBIs, 1 run scored and a stolen base. His homer was a 3-run blast that proved to be the difference on the scoreboard. Lee Jin-yeong(.329/.400/.538), Park Yong-taek(.381/.443/.628) and Ahn Chi-yong(.225/.329/.341) homered for the Twins. The less said about the pitching, the better.

Samsung 3, Hanhwa 2
W - Kim Sang-su (2-2), L - Ryu Hyeon-jin (7-5), S - Oh Seung-hwan (16)

I almost went to this last night, but my tummy was a little tender, so I skipped. My perfect 0-5 season is still intact. I am going to chance my record on Thursday, if my tummy allows.

Ryu Hyeon-jin(3.87 ERA, 1.39 WHIP) looked better than he has in months. I'm not sure if he's actually throwing better or the Samsung offense can make anyone look good. Ryu tossed 6 innings(109 pitches, 68 strikes) and surrendered 3 runs. He allowed 9 hits and 1 walk while striking out 9. 2 of the 9 hits left the park and they accounted for all 3 Samsung runs. Samsung 3rd baseman Park Seok-min(.238/.354/.492) hit a solo homer in the 1st inning and a 2-run bomb in the 6th. Park finished 3-4 with 3 RBI's and 3 runs scored. He was the Samsung offense. Victor Diaz(.286/.349/.606) and Kim Tae-wan(.321/.446/.600) hit back-to-back homers in the 1st inning and that accounted for all the runs Hanhwa would score.

SK 11, KIA 1
W - Song Eun-beom (9-0), L - Jin Min-ho (1-2)

The SK offense battered the KIA pitching staff while Song Eun-beom(2.66 ERA, 1.17 WHIP) was able to keep KIA off the scoreboard for most of the game. Song tossed 7 innings(95 pitches 66 strikes) of 1-run baseball. Song allowed only 4 hits and 1 walk while striking out 6. SK 3rd baseman Choi Jeong(.241/.341/.397) continued to emerge from his early season slumber. Choi finished the game 2-3 with a walk, 3 RBIs and 2 runs scored. SK right fielder Na Ju-hwan(.292/.376/.439) went 2-4 with a double, 3 RBIs, 1 run scored and a stolen base from the #9 spot. SK 2nd baseman Jeong Geun-woo(.346/.412/.455) stole 3 bases and went 2-4 with 1 RBI and 1 run scored. Nothing else remotely interesting happened for either side.

Lotte 7, Doosan 3
W - Song Seung-joon (6-3), L - Kim Sun-woo (6-6)

Song(4.31 ERA, 1.53) is starting to break from the mold. He's been an innings eater. A Korean Jon Garland since I've been here. It appears now that he's going deeper into games, not walking batters by the handful and generally pitching well. Good for him. Song tossed 7 innings(95 pitches, 64 strikes) of 2-run baseball. He allowed 7 hits and struck out 5. The key number here is 0 walks. 0. The only runs he allowed came on a pair of solo homers in the 4th inning from outfielder Min Byeong-hyeon(.286/.345/.421) and pinch hitter Yoo Jae-wong(.290/.395/.507). Lotte relied on a 4-run 2nd inning rally to carry them to victory. Lotte outfielders Kim Min-seong(.282/.357/.378) and Park Jeong-joon(.331/.428/.508) both enjoyed 2 RBI evenings.