8/5 Roundup and News

Samsung has signed Tim Redding to replace Brandon Knight. Redding was most recently seen with the Yankees AAA team.

Lotte 4, Doosan 1
W - Kim Su-wan (2-0), L - Lim Tae-hoon (9-8), S - Kang Yeong-sik (1)
Lotte HR - Hong Seong-heun (26), Lee Dae-ho (31), Park Jong-yoon (7) Doosan HR - None

Lotte starter Kim Su-wan pitched about as well as he could have against the Bears and the Lotte bullpen found a way not to blow the game. Kim tossed 5 1/3 innings(87 pitches, 52 strikes) of shutout baseball. Kim gave up five hits and two walks while striking out five. The Lotte offense gave Kim just enough help to win. DH Hong Seong-heun started the game with a solo homer. Hong finished 2-4 with an RBI and two runs scored. Third baseman Lee Dae-ho added a two-run homer in the fourth. Lotte picked up another run in the seventh on a solo homer from first baseman Park Jong-yoon. Lotte reliever Kang Yeong-sik tossed 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief to earn the save. Kang allowed two hits and one hit batsman while striking out two.

Nexen 11, Hanhwa 8
W - Kim Seong-hyeon (4-5), L - Julio DePaula (5-10), S - Song Shin-yeon (1)
Nexen HR - None Hanhwa HR - Shin Kyeong-hyeon (7)

This one got messy. Nexen rallied for six runs in the third inning off of Hanhwa starter Julio DePaula. DePaula stays in the country, but Brandon Knight gets released. I'm guessing Hanhwa doesn't want to pay for another foreign pitcher this year. I'm not going into the blow-by-blow, but the inning had everything. Basehits, walks, wild pitches, poor fielding. It was a clinic on how to give away runs. Hanhwa got back into the game with a four-run rally in the seventh inning. The rally was highlighted by a three-run homer off the bat of catcher Shin Kyeong-hyeon. Nexen rallied for five more runs in the eighth inning. This rally featured not one, but two key fielding errors by the Hanhwa Eagles. The rally started with two outs and the bases loaded. Hanhwa second baseman Jeong Won-seok couldn't handle a grounder that would have ended the inning. Things snowballed from there. An error by catcher Shin Kyeong-hyeon was almost indescribable. Third baseman Kim Min-woo singled to left with the bases loaded. There was a late throw to the plate and Shin tried to get the runner on second who was drifting off the bag. The throw was high and wide and went into center field. The only problem was that the center fielder was out of position because of the hit to left. The throw rolled to the wall. When the dust settled, the bases were empty and the scoreboard read 11-4. The Hanhwa offense battered a wild Song Seung-rak for four runs in the top of the ninth. Nexen reliever Song Shin-yeong came in for Song and recorded the final out for the vulture save. Lost in this game was a solid effort from Nexen starter Kim Seong-hyeon. Kim tossed six+ innings(107 pitches, 67 strikes) and allowed two-runs. Kim gave up three hits and three walks while striking out six.

SK 5, Samsung 1
W - Ken Kadokura (12-5), L - Bae Yeong-su (5-6)
SK HR - Park Kyeong-wan (13) Samsung HR - None

SK rode a solid start from Kadokura and some early offense to victory. Kadokura threw six innings(87 pitches, 55 strikes) of one-run baseball. Kadokura gave up only two hits and three walks while striking out four. SK scored a pair of runs in the first inning thanks to a two RBI single from first baseman Park Jeong-kwan. Park's single came after a lead off single from center fielder Kim Kang-min and a double from second baseman Jeong Geun-woo. SK picked up another run in the second inning on a solo homer from catcher Park Kyeong-wan.

KIA 11, LG 2
W - Roman Colon (6-5), L - Park Hyeon-joon (0-2)
KIA HR - Choi Hee-seop (18), Lee Jong-beom (4) LG HR - None

The KIA offense came to play. KIA first baseman hit a three-run homer during a five-run fourth inning rally that put this game out of reach for the Zombies. KIA catcher Kim Sang-hoon went 2-3 with a walk, a double, two RBIs and two runs scored. KIA starter Roman Colon took advantage of the early cushion and cruised to a W. Colon tossed six innings(95 pitches, 61 strikes) of one-run ball. Colon gave up five hits and one hit batsman while striking out one.