5/18 Roundup and News

KIA 7, LG 3
W - Travis Blackley (3-3), L - Bong Jung-geun (1-2)
KIA HR - None LG HR - Yoon Sang-gyun (3)

The difference here was that Travis Blackley threw well and kept his team in the game. LG starter Bong Jung-geun did not.

Blackley tossed seven innings(101 pitches, 63 strikes) of two-run baseball. Big Trav gave up six hits and two walks while striking out eight. Trav managed seven ground outs and eight fly outs.

Dr. Bong didn't have much on Wednesday. Bong gave up three runs on three hits and two walks during two innings of work. Reliever Kim Ki-pyo picked up where Bong left off and gave up four runs on five hits while recording four outs.

KIA left fielder Kim Sang-hyeon lead the Tigers' offense by going 2-4 with a double, a run scored and three RBIs. Shin Jong-gil came on as a pinch hitter for DH Park Ki-nam in the early innings and went 2-3 with a double and two RBIs.

Samsung 4, Nexen 0
W - Ken Kadokura (2-2), L - Moon Seong-hyeon (1-2)
Samsung HR - None Nexen HR - None

Ken Kadokura gave the Samsung bullpen the night off. Kadokura threw a complete game shutout(135 pitches, 82 strikes) in his 100th career(Korea and Japan) victory. Kadokura gave up only three hits, one walk and one hit batsman while striking out six. Ken recorded 14 outs via the fly ball. In other words, a lot of balls found gloves and stayed out of the seats.

Samsung picked up a run in the first inning when center fielder Lee Yeong-wook walked, stole second and scored on a base hit by third baseman Park Seok-min. Samsung grabbed another run in the third inning on a RBI single from second baseman Shin Myeong-cheol. Then, Samsung rallied for two more in the fourth inning to give Kadokura a little breathing room to work with.

SK 4, Lotte 2
W - Gary Glover (4-1), L - Ryan Sadowski (1-2), S - Jeong Dae-hyeon (8)
SK HR - Park Jeong-kwon (6) Lotte - None

Ryan Sadowski is having a hard time catching a break this year. First, he missed the first month with an oblique strains(abdominal injuries are the worst). Then, he came back a little too early and didn't appear to have his stamina where it needed to be to start.

Sadowski threw 7 2/3 innings(98 pitches, 58 strikes), but gave up all four SK runs. Sadowski allowed six hits and one walk while striking out four. Nine of the outs he recorded came via the ground ball. Sadowski really can't be asked to do any more than keep hitters off balance and get ground balls.

SK picked up a run in the second inning when catcher Jeong Sang-ho doubled and scored on a single from right fielder Lim Hoon. SK grabbed another run in the third when shortstop Park Jin-man doubled, advanced to third on a sac bunt and scored on a sac fly from Park Jae-sang.

Then things got a little weird. SK put a runner on second with two outs in the fifth inning. Jeong Geun-woo hit a line drive to left that Hong Seong-heun dove for and watched bounce off his glove for an RBI double.

Lotte loaded the bases with one out in the seventh inning. Lotte center fielder Jeon Joon-woo hit a 1-0 pitch down the left field line that hung in the air for....ev....er. SK second baseman Jeong Geun-woo almost ran all the way to the warning track while tracking the ball. It fell in between a spring Jeong and a kinda lollygagging Lim Hoon. To be fair to Lim, if he ran hard after the ball, there was a 98% chance that Jeong would have clobbered him. One run scored and the bases remained loaded. Lotte first baseman Park Jong-yoon hit a sac fly out to left to plate Lotte's second run.

SK picked up some insurance in the eighth inning when Park Jeong-kwon hit a solo homer to push the SK lead to 4-2.

SK reliever Jeong Dae-hyeon recorded the final six outs in order with two K's for the save.

SK catcher Park Kyeong-wan came on as a defensive replacement. This was Park's first appearance of the year. He's been rehabbing for a long time since suffering a bad achilles' injury last year.

Hanhwa 9, Doosan 7
W - Park Jeong-jin (3-1), L - Jeong Jae-hoon (1-1)
Hanhwa HR - None Doosan HR - Kim Dong-ju (4)

Doosan starter Fernando Nieve looks like he's not going to be in Korea much longer. Nieve was battered for two runs on six hits and a walk in three innings of work.

Thankfully, for the Bears, Hanhwa starter Kim Min-je was equally mediocre and Doosan was able to keep the game close and actually take a lead...until the Doosan bullpen let the Hanhwa offense rally for five runs in the sixth inning.

Hanhwa first baseman Jeong Won-seok came through with the key hit of the inning. With the bases loaded and one out, Jeong spanked a base hit into right to score a pair of runs and tie the game at six. Hanhwa picked up another run on an RBI single from right fielder Choo Seung-woo to take a 7-6 lead.

Doosan tied the game in the bottom of the sixth on a RBI double from DH Kim Dong-ju. Kim ended the game 3-5 with two doubles, a homer, two runs scored and two RBIs.

Hanhwa broke the tie in the seventh with an RBI single from third baseman Lee Yeo-sang after a balk by pitcher Jeong Jae-hoon allowed catcher Shin Kyeong-hyeon to advance to scoring position.

Hanhwa tacked on an insurance run in the eight with an RBI single from center fielder Kim Dong-woo. Kim finished 3-5 with a run scored and two RBIs.

8/14 Roundup and News

Doosan/SK was washed out in Seoul.

Nexen 8, LG 6
W - Adrian Burnside (10-9), L - Phil Dumatrait (4-6), S - Son Seung-rak (18)
Nexen HR - Kim Min-woo (8), Jang Yeong-seok (3) LG HR - Park Kyeong-su (3), Cho In-seong 2(23), Oh Ji-hwan (12), Lee Byeong-gyu (9)

Nexen jumped out to an early lead thanks to a five-run, two-homer first inning and extended their lead in the fourth inning on a two-run single from catcher Kang Gui-tae. Then, LG played home run derby to make the final look good in the paper. LG hit five solo homers. Nexen starter Adrian Burnside actually pitched pretty well. Burnside threw five innings(109 pitches, 66 strikes) of two-run baseball. Burnside gave up six hits, two walks and one hit batsman while striking out four.

Samsung 8, Hanhwa 2
W - Jang Won-sam (11-4), L - Yoon Gyu-jin (1-1), S - Ahn Ji-man (7)
Samsung HR - Park Seok-min (13), Cho Dong-chan (9) Hanhwa HR - Son Ji-hwan (1)

Samsung starter has been as advertised since the all-star break. Jang threw 7 1/3 innings(81 pitches, 54 strikes) of two-run baseball. Jang allowed only seven hits while striking out three. The Samsung offense battered the Hanhwa bullpen after starter Choi Yeong-pil exited the game after five innings of two-run ball. Samsung third baseman/lead off hitter Cho Dong-chan was Mr. Everything. Cho went 2-4 with with a walk, a homer, three RBIs, two runs scored and a stolen base. DH Park Seok-min continued to swing a hot bat with another homer. Park finished 1-2 with a walk, a sacrifice, two RBIs and two runs scored.

Lotte 10, KIA 2
W - Jang Won-joon (10-6), L - Yang Hyeon-jong (14-4)
Lotte HR - Lee Dae-ho (38), Kim Ju-chan (8) KIA HR - Kim Sang-hyeon (15)

Lotte MVP candidate, Lee Dae-ho, broke his own record again with a homer in his ninth consecutive game. Lee finished the day 3-5 with a homer, four RBIs and a run scored. Left fielder Kim Ju-chan chipped in with a 2-4, one homer, two RBI, two run scored, one stolen base effort. Lotte starter Jang Won-joon enjoyed a lot of early run support and cruised to a W. Jang tossed 6 2/3 innings(92 pitches, 58 strikes) of two-run baseball. Jang gave up four hits and two walks while striking out three. KIA starter Yang Hyeon-jong was awful. Yang was chased during the second inning and was charged with five runs on four hits and five(!) walks. KIA third baseman Kim Sang-hyeon was one of the few bright spots for the Tigers. Kim went 2-3 with a walk, a double and a solo homer.

8/13 Roundup and News

Lotte Giants corner infielder Lee Dae-ho broke his own record by homering in his eighth consecutive game on Friday. Dude is locked in.

Doosan 7, SK 4
W - Kelvin Jimenez (13-4), L - Ken Kadokura (12-6), S - Lee Yong-chan (24)
Doosan HR - Kim Hyeon-su (17), Son Si-hyeon (7) SK HR - None

LG 3, Nexen 1
W - Park Hyeon-joon (1-2), L - CJ Nitkowski (0-3), S - Lee Dong-hyeon (4)
LG HR - None Nexen HR - None

Samsung 11, Hanhwa 5
W - Jeong Hyeon-wook (7-1), L - Yang Hoon (3-4)
Samsung HR - Kang Bong-gyu (4), Shin Myeong-cheol (6) Hanhwa HR - Jeon Hyeon-tae (5)

KIA 7, Lotte 2
W - Yoon Seok-min (5-3), L - Kim Sa-yul (1-4)
KIA HR - Kim Sang-hyeon (14) Lotte HR - Lee Dae-ho (37)

8/12 Roundup and News

Doosan/Nexen and SK/LG were both rained out last night.

KIA 5, Hanhwa 3
W - Roman Colon (7-5), L - Ahn Seung-min (2-2), S - Yoo Dong-hoon (13)
KIA HR - Ahn Chi-hong (6), Na Ji-wan (11) Hanhwa HR - None

KIA rode a quality start from Roman Colon and a couple early homers to victory. Colon tossed six innings(89 pitches, 54 strikes) of three-run baseball. Colon gave up four hits and two walks while striking out three. He isn't the flashiest guy in the KBO, but Colon has brought a stabilizing presence to the KIA rotation. The same presence that they lost when Rick Guttormson decided not to re-sign. KIA second baseman Ahn Chi-hong gave the Tigers an early lead with a solo homer in the second inning. Hanhwa picked up a couple runs in the third and fourth innings and actually lead 3-1 until the fifth. KIA put runners on first and second with one out and left fielder Na Ji-wan stepped to the plate. Na homered to give KIA a 4-3 advantage. Na finished the game 2-4 with four RBIs and one run scored. KIA reliever Yoo Dong-hoon recorded the final five outs in order to record the save.

Samsung 10, Lotte 7
W - Kwon Hyeok (6-1), L - Lee Jeong-hoon (2-7)
Samsung HR - Park Seok-min (12) Lotte HR - Cho Seong-hwan (6), Lee Dae-ho (36), Kang Min-ho (19)

With a homer in last night's game against Samsung, Lee Dae-ho has now homered in seven consecutive games. Lee's seven-game streak is a KBO record.

Lee's seventh inning blast cut the Samsung lead to 7-6. Lotte scored again in the seventh when Kang Min-ho connected for a solo homer to tie the game at seven. The game remained knotted at seven until Samsung rallied in the top of the ninth inning. Samsung loaded the bases with two outs. Second baseman Shin Myeong-cheol doubled down the right field line to score a pair and give Samsung a 9-7 lead. Shin finished the evening 3-5 with three RBIs. Samsung added another run on a single from catcher Jin Kab-yong to push the lead to 10-7. Samsung DH Park Seok-min continued his recent hot streak. Park went 3-4 with a double, a homer, three RBIs and three runs scored.

7/14 Roundup and News

Samsung DH Yang Joon-hyeok became the first Korean to hit 350 career homers.

LG/SK and Hanhwa/KIA were both washed out last night.

On to the roundup...

Doosan 14, Samsung 9
W - Geum Min-cheol (2-1), L - Cha Woo-chan (6-5)

I can't believe they played this game. It was pissing off and on all day in Daegu. When I tuned in during the 3rd inning and saw the score was 10-2, I really wished it was rained out.

The Doosan lineup simply wore out the Samsung pitching staff. Doosan scored 10 runs in 3 innings and only had 1(!) extra base hit. Doosan DH Choi Joon-sik(.352/.420/.549) finished 3-3(all singles) with 5 RBIs. Shortstop Lim Jae-cheol(.294/.415/.387) finished 2-3(all singles) with 3 RBIs. The two teams combined to use 12 pitchers during the game. Doosan alone needed 7 pitchers to throw 9 innings. The two starting pitchers combined to throw 2 innings. Doosan starter Lee Jae-woo(3.29 ERA, 1.20 WHIP) lasted only 1/3 of an inning, while Samsung starter Cha Woo-chan(5.23 ERA, 1.70 WHIP) managed to last 1 2/3 innings. This was an ugly, ugly game.

Lotte 8, Hanhwa 1
W - Jang Won-joon (8-6), L - Kim Hyeok-min (7-9)

This game was actually a little more interesting than the scoreboard makes it look. Lotte held a 3-1 lead in the 7th inning when the Giants exploded for a 5-run rally off of the hapless Hanhwa bullpen. Kim Hyeok-min(7.75 ERA, 1.91 WHIP) took another loss, but he pitched slightly better than usual. Hey! He made it into the 5th inning. That's progress. Lotte starter Jang Won-joon(4.14 ERA, 1.51 WHIP) looked solid last night. Jang tossed 6 2/3 innings(101 pitches, 58 strikes) of 1-run baseball. He allowed 4 hits and 4 walks while striking out 4. With most of the Lotte regulars either injured or resting, the backups took advantage of the opportunity. Backup 1st baseman Park Jong-yoon(.375/.421/.438 in 16 AB's) and backup outfielder Jeong Bo-myeong(.319/.387/.385) both drove in 2 RBIs. Backup catcher Jang Seong-woo(.250/.316/.313 in 16 AB's) added 3 RBIs for the Giants. 2 of which came on his knockout punch/2 RBI double in the 7th inning.

I really can't wait for the end of monsoon season.

5/8 - 5/10 Roundup and News

I've been interviewed at Ron Rollins' Baseball Over There blog. Hardly newsworthy, but if you were at all curious about me, now you have a few answers. Ron does an excellent job of following baseball all over the world and his blog is worthy of your attention.

Yang Joon-hyeok finally hit his 341st homerun. What they don't mention was that he, erm, overslept for a 2 o'clock game the next day. My guess is, he hit the soju a little too hard and couldn't stagger to the ballpark in time. I wouldn't be surprised if 341 shots of soju were involved in his evening.

CJ Nitkowski is on twitter. The money quote comes from 6 days ago, "I am in Busan and the team warned us not to go out at night because the fans here hate us and are crazy."

Not baseball related, but Daegu related. Daegu Pockets, a bi-lingual magazine for expats, has been launched and, well, it looks pretty cool and sounds fairly useful. Here's a link to their website.

I'm probably going to start posting slash stats in the next few days or so now that we actually have more than a few weeks of data. For hitters it'll be BA/OBP/SLG and for pitchers, probably just WHIP and ERA, unless I feel motivated to do K:BB.

On to the roundup...

Doosan vs. Hanwha
5/8 - Doosan 6, Hanwha 2
5/9 - Doosan 4, Hanwha 3
5/10 -Doosan 4, Hanwha 0

Doosan's relief pitching absolutely handcuffed the potent Hanwha offense this weekend.

On Friday Doosan starter Hwang Sang-sam pitched well enough to win, but it was the 4 shutout innings of relief work from the Doosan bullpen that lead them to victory. 4 Doosan relievers combined to limit Hanwha to only 2 hits and 1 walk while striking out 8. Doosan left fielder Kim Hyeon-su solid night at the plate. He went 3-4 with 2 doubles, a stolen base, 1 RBI and 1 run scored. He's Mr. Everything right now for Doosan. Doosan DH Choi Joon-seok drove in a pair of runs with a single during a key 3-run rally in the 3rd inning. Choi's single proved to be the game winning runs.

The Doosan bullpen came up big again on Saturday. Doosan starter Kim Sang-hyeon was chased from the game after only 4 1/3 innings of work. He allowed all 3 Eagles runs to score on 7 hits and 2 walks. Kim managed to strike out 3. 4 Doosan relievers combined to finish the game without giving up any runs. Hanwha ace Ryu Hyeon-jin was fairly mediocre in his Saturday start. He lasted only 5 innings(101 pitches, 60 strikes) and surrendered all 4 runs(3 earned) en route to his first loss. He allowed 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6. Losing 3-1 in the bottom of the 5th inning, Doosan rallied to take the lead. With a runner on 3rd and 1 out, Kim Hyeon-su hit a grounder to short. Hanwha shortstop Oh Seon-jin struggled to find the handle and Kim was able to beat the throw. The runner on third was able to score on the play. The next batter, 3rd baseman Kim Dong-joo, clubbed a Ryu Hyeon-jin offering into the left field seats for a 2-run homer. Kim's blast would be the last time anyone crossed the plate on Saturday, both bullpens kept the other team off the scoreboard.

Doosan starting pitcher Jeong Jae-hoon gave the Doosan bullpen some relief on Sunday. Jeong worked 7 innings(97 pitches, 64 strikes) of shutout baseball. He allowed only 3 hits, 2 walks and 1 hit batter while striking out 6. In the bottom of the 6th inning, Doosan center fielder Min Byeong-hyeon delivered an RBI double to break the scoreless tie. Then, With runners on the corners and 0 outs, Doosan left fielder Kim Hyeon-su hit a 1-0 offering from Ahn Yeong-myeong over the right field fence for a 3-run homer. Kim finished the game 2-4 with 1 K.

SK vs. Seoul Heroes
5/8 - SK 4, Heroes 4
5/ 9 - SK 7, Heroes 3
5/10 - SK 8, Heroes 2

Friday's game took over 4 hours to complete. I was able to watch Samsung get clobbered by LG, take the subway home and catch the end of this game. The Heroes got all their scoring from 2 2-run homers. Jeong Su-seong went deep in the 3rd and Kang Jeong-ho launched one in the 8th. SK catcher Park Kyeong-wan was the SK offense. He hit a 2-run bomb in the 1st inning to give SK an early lead. Then, with SK losing 4-3 in the bottom of the 8th, Park hit an RBI single to left that scored Park Jae-hong and tied the game at 4. Nothing remotely interesting happened in the final 4 innings and SK was stuck with its 4th tie of the season.

Ken Kadokura rebounded from his a shaky start last week to give SK a quality effort. Kadokura tossed 6 1/3 innings(91 pitches, 54 strikes) of 2-run baseball. He allowed only 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 5. The only runs he allowed came in the 4th inning. Kadokura surrendered solo homers to Hwang Jae-gyun and Kang Jeong-ho. All of SK's offense came via the long ball. Park Jae-hong hit a 2-run bomb in the bottom of the 4th to tie the game at 2. SK infielder Park Jeong-kwon followed Jae-hong's blast with a grand slam in the 5th. 1st baseman Lee Ho-joon ended the scoring with a solo shot in the 6th to give SK a 7-2 lead. The Heroes mounted a fake rally in the 8th, but it was too little, too late.

The SK offense battered Heroes starter Jeong Won-sam, while SK ace Kim Kwang-hyeon was able to cruise. Jeong lasted only 4 2/3 innings on Sunday. He allowed 3 runs on hits and 2 walks. He managed to strike out 5. The guy that relieved him didn't do much better. After Jeong was removed, the Heroes bullpen threw BP. SK rallied for 3 runs in the 6th and 2 more in the 7th. Kim Kwang-hyeon, wasn't great, but he was good enough to win. Kim tossed 6 2/3 innings(114 pitches, 72 strikes) of 2-run baseball. He allowed 4 hits, 4 walks and 1 hit batsman while striking out 8. I get the impression that Kim is still suffering a WBC hangover, but he seems to be figuring things out.

Samsung vs. LG
5/8 - LG 11, Samsung 3
5/9 - LG 5, Samsung 1
5/10 - Samsung 3, LG 1

If you are a Samsung fan, like me, and chose to attend Friday night's contest, like me, you walked home really disappointed. Samsung was awful. They couldn't pitch, they couldn't hit, they even had a little trouble catching and throwing. Whatever. 4 different Twins had at least 2 RBIs. The less said about this game the better, but Shin Myeong-cheol continued his surprising hot streak. he hit a solo homer in the 3rd inning that landed 5 rows in front of me in CF. I'm getting older and I chose not to join the scrum for the ball. Moving on...

More of the same for Samsung on Saturday, except when they hit their superfluous solo homerun in the 6th inning, everyone had to cheer. It was Yang Joon-hyeok's 341st career homer. I'm happy for the big fella. This record has been within his grasp for a while. I was surprised that he didn't do this earlier. LG's Jeong Jae-bok threw 5 shutout innings, while Bae Yong-su was pummelled mercilessly. This time only 2 LG batters had 2 RBI nights. Hey! That's half as many as Friday! I'm encouraged!

Francisco Cruceta gave the Lions a quality start and look at what they did with it! Cruceta threw 6 innings(95 pitches, 49 strikes) of shutout baseball. He allowed 3 hits, 2 walks and 1 hit batsman while striking out 2. In the 3rd inning, Samsung right fielder Park Han-yi hit a grounder to first to score Son Joo-in from 3rd and give Samsung a 1-run lead. Shin Myeong-cheol delivered RBI singles in the 5th and 7th to extend Samsung's lead. Oh Seung-hwan struck out the side in the 9th to record the save.

KIA vs. Lotte
5/8 - KIA 4, Lotte 3
5/9 - Lotte 5, KIA 4
5/10 - KIA 2, Lotte 1

If you had told me that the combined scoring for both teams would be in the single digits for all three games of this series, I would have called you a liar, liar.

On Friday night Lee Dae-ho was the Lotte offense. He hit a solo homer in the 2nd and a 2-run bomb in the 8th to account for all 3 Lotte runs. Lee was the only Giant that could solve KIA starter Yang Hyeon-jong. Yang worked 7 innings(104 pitches, 68 strikes) of 1-run baseball. He allowed 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6. KIA had a pair of 2-run rallies in the 5th and 6th innings to account for their offense. Kim Won-seop hit a key RBI double in the 6th inning to give KIA a 4-1 advantage. After Lee's 2nd homer, Kim's double proved to be the difference in the ballgame. KIA closer Yoon Seok-min retired the final five batters in order to record the save. He struck out 3.

Saturday's game featured a strange pitching line from KIA starter Aquilino Lopez. He threw a complete game(122 pitches, 75 strikes), but surrendered 5 runs and most of them came during a 4-run rally in the 4th inning. Lopez allowed 7 hits and 1 walk while striking out 4. 5 of Lotte's 8 baserunners came during the key rally. Lotte was lucky that they were able to keep the score close, let alone come away with a W. Lotte starter Song Seung-joon was brutal. In only 1 2/3 innings of work, Song surrendered 3 runs on 2 hits and 4 walks. Somehow, he struck a batter out. That guy's face must've been red. The Lotte bullpen had to work 7 1/3 innings. It was mostly scoreless, except for reliever Kim Sa-yul surrendering a solo homer to KIA catcher Kim Sang-hoon in the 8th inning. Kim's homer made it a one run game, but that was as close as KIA could get. Jon Adkins shut the door by retiring the final 4 batters in order for the save.

Sunday featured the same inept offenses. KIA starting pitcher Rick Guttormson shutdown the Lotte offense for the 2nd time this season. Guttormson worked 7 innings(109 pitches, 68 strikes) of 1-run ball. He allowed only 6 hits and 1 walk while striking out 9. Lotte starter Kim Yoo-shin needed 86 pitches to record 13 outs. He was pulled during the 5th inning. Kim surrendered only 1 run on 3 hits and 3 walks while striking out 4. With the score tied at 1 in the bottom of the 7th inning, Lotte's Lee Jong-min came in to pitch. He drilled the first batter, Hong Se-won, in the head. Hong was pulled for a pinch runner. The next batter, 1st baseman Jang Seong-ho hit a chopper to 2nd base. It was fielded cleanly, but the throw hit the heel of 1st baseman Lee Dae-ho's glove and he dropped it. KIA had runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Then, KIA 3rd baseman Kim Sang-hyeon hit a bouncer up the middle for a basehit. It was slow enough to get the runner in from 2nd and give KIA a 2-1 lead. I can't believe he didn't bunt. KIA closer Yoon Seok-min threw a scoreless 9th inning for his 2nd save of the series.

4/9 Roundup and News

Hanwha Eagles pitcher, Song Jin-woo threw his 3000th KBO inning last night. He is the first pitcher in KBO history to reach 3000 innings and he is already the career leader in innings pitched by a wide margin. The 43-year old pitcher is in his 21st KBO season. He broke in with the Eagles in 1989(Then sponsored by Bingrae) and actually started out as a reliever. In 1992, Song finished the season 19-8 with 17 saves in 48 appearances. He tossed 191 1/3 innings that year. In 2002, he set a career mark for innings pitched with 220. He finished with a 18-7 record over 31 starts. For his career, Song boasts a 210-153 record with 103 saves. Last season he recorded his 2000th career strikeout. He's also 1-4 in his career at the plate.

The Joongang Daily gives us a look at the contrasting styles of Kim Tae-gyun and Kim Hyun-soo. I still miss Jee-ho, but this was a fairly well-written article. It was also fairly timely. Seeing as how the two teams played this week. Keep an eye out for the orange bat of Kim Hyun-soo. I get the feeling its going to start gaining mystical properties in the coming weeks.

CJ Nitkowski has been sent down to SK's minor league team. Joining CJ in the minors are 1st baseman Lee Ho-jun, 2nd baseman Jeong Geun-woo and third baseman Na Ju-hwan. All of these guys could be back in a few days. I get the impression that manager Kim Seong-geun was tired watching mediocre play for 4 games and wanted to send a message.

On to the roundup...

LG 6, Lotte 3
W - Bong Jung-geun(1-1), L - Jang Won-joon (0-2)

LG jumped all over Lotte starting pitcher, Jang Won-joon. The battered him to the tunr of 5 runs on 9 hits and 1 walk during his 3 /1/3 innings pitched. Jang was lifted with the bases loaded in the 4th inning. Lotte reliever, Bae Jang-ho, provided little relief last night. The first batter he faced, LG outfielder Ahn Chi-yong, ripped a double to right center to clear the bases. Ahn was thrown out trying to advance to third. The newest Twin, Lee Jin-yeong, continues to be a catalyst for this LG lineup. He finished last night's game 2-3 with 2 runs scored. While Jang had his difficulties, Bong Jung-geun was able to cruise for 7 innings(102 pitches, 63 strikes) of 1-run baseball. Bong allowed 5 hits and 2 walks with 2 K's. The only run off of Bong came on a solo homer by Kim Joo-chan in the 3rd inning. Lotte's Son Ah-seob added another solo homer in the 9th. Lotte DH Hong Seong-heun was 3-4 with 2 doubles, but 0 RBI's or runs scored.

Seoul Heroes 9, Samsung 5
W - Ma Il-yeong(1-1), L - Bae Yong-su(0-1)

I sure am glad I tuned in for batting practice! When does the game start? Oh. Bae Yong-su provided the normal Bae Yong-su mediocre start. He started things off by allowing a solo homer to 3rd baseman Hwang Jae-gyun in the first inning. Then, another solo homer to Kang Jeong-ho in the 3rd. After tossing the ball into right field on a pick off attempt, Bae surrendered another deep fly to Kim Taek-geun. This time it was only a sac fly, but the Heroes tied game at 3. After loading the bases in the 5th inning, Bae surrendered another sac fly to give the Heroes a 4-3 lead. Finally, Doug Clark hit a ball to center field that just landed this morning. Upon reaching the dugout, Clark executed several multi-step handshakes and a chest bump with some of his teammates. It's good to see these guys getting along. Cliff Brumbaugh hit an "Eff you" homer in the 8th inning that took approximately .00003 seconds to go from his bat to over the wall off of Oh Seung-hwan.

Doosan 11, Hanwha 2
W - Kim Sun-woo(2-0), L - Jeong Min-cheol (0-1)

The big story here was the record set by Song Jin-woo, so no one really seems to care that Hanwha got absolutely pummeled. Doosan left fielder Kim Hyeon-soo had a huge night for Doosan. He finished 4-4 with 2 doubles, 1 walk, 2 RBIs and 2 runs scored. Doosan's Choi Joon-seok clubbed a solo homer in the 3rd inning. Doosan DH Matt Watson also got in on the action. Watson hit a 2-run bomb in the 5th. Matt finished the night 2-5 with 3 RBI. Doosan starting pitcher Kim Sun-woo turned in his 2nd straight quality start. Kim worked 5 2/3 innings(84 pitches, 52 strikes) of 1 run ball. Kim allowed 5 hits and 2 walks with 4 K's on the night. The only run he allowed came on a Kim Tae-gyun solo homer. The homer was Kim's 2nd of the season.

KIA 2, SK 2

Hey! Another tie! Great. Chae Byeong-yeong had a nice effort wasted by a struggling SK offense. Chae tossed 6 shutout innings(96 pitches, 61 strikes). He only surrendered 5 hits and 1 walk. He was able to strikeout 7 Tigers during his start. SK's 1st run came on an RBI single from outfielder Park Jae-sang in the 5th inning. KIA would tie the game in the 8th inning when third baseman Ahn Chi-hong hit a slow roller up the middle that got past the pitcher. The ball took for..e...ver to reach the 2nd baseman. By the time the ball got to him, Choi Yong-gyu was sliding across the plate. SK took a 2-1 lead in the top of the 12th on an RBI double from DH Yoon Sang-gyun. KIA tied the game in the bottom of the 12th on an RBI single from Jang Seong-ho. With no outs and runners on 1st and 2nd, Choi Hee-seop grounded into a double play. With a runner on 3rd and 2 outs, KIA's Na Ji-hwan was intentionally walked. Ahn Chi-hong came up to the plate to be a hero and...he...hit...a...towering...fly...ball...to..left...which was caught at the warning track. Ballgame. Tie. Pucker up and go find your sisters.

9/24 Roundup and News

Heroes catcher, Kim Dong-su, played in his 2,000th career KBO game on Tuesday night. Kim has played 19 years in the KBO and he celebrates his 40th birthday next month. He also hit his 200th career KBO homer this season. He enjoyed 20 homer seasons twice in his career, both seasons with LG in '93 and '98 respecively. His finest season actually came in 2003 as a member of the league champion Hyundai Unicorns. Kim hit .308 in 367 ABs, clubbed 16 homers and drove in 68 runs.

Kim Kwang-hyeon wants the pitching triple crown. It would probably make more sense to limit his workout before the playoffs. Kim has thrown more than twice as many innings this year as he did last year.

On to the roundup...

The Heroes 4, Doosan 2
W - Jang Won-sam (11-8), L - Kim Sun-woo (6-6), S - Shingo Takatsu (7)

Doosan starter, Kim Sun-woo, was absolutely lit up last night. He was lifted after a 40-pitch 1st inning. He did record all three outs by strike out, but he allowed 4 runs on 5 hits. The Heroes starter, Jang Won-sam, was able to cruise to victory. Jang tossed 7 2/3 innings(127 pitches, 85 strikes) allowing 2 runs on 7 hits and 1 walk with 4 K's. Shingo recorded the last 5 outs and lowered his ERA to 0.96.

SK 2, LG 1
W - Chae Byeong-yong (10-2), L - Chris Oxspring (10-10), S - Lee Seung-ho (2)

LG scored its one and only run thanks to a solo homer in the 2nd inning from infielder, Kim Sang-hyeon. Chris Oxspring was able to keep SK off the board, until he seemed to run out of gas in the 8th inning. He surrendered a 2-RBI double to SK's Park Jae-sang. Oxspring worked all 8 innings(115 pitches, 78 strikes) allowing 2 runs on 10 hits with 4 K's. SK starter, Chae Byeong-yong was a little better. Chae worked 8 2/3 innings(101 pitches, 69 strikes) allowing just the 1 run on 6 hits with 6 K's. This is the first game I remember in seeing, perhaps ever, that a base on balls was NOT issued. Both pitchers stayed in the zone and ahead of hitters. This game was an absolute pleasure to watch.

Samsung 8, Lotte 5
W - Bae Yong-su (9-8), L - Jo Jeong-hoon (5-3), S - Oh Seung-hwan (37)

Now that the Giants are in the playoffs they are clearly stat paddin' for the rest of the season. They scored 4 of their 5 runs on homers last night. They hit 4 of them. Park Jong-yoon in the 3rd, Kang Min-ho and Son Kwang-min in the 6th and Karim Garcia in the 8th. 4 of the teams 7 hits left the park and they struck out 7 times. Everyone wants to add an extra homer or two to the season total. Samsung added two long balls of their own. Both were also solo shots. Choi Hyeong-woo connected in the 2nd and Shin Myeong-cheol connected in the 3rd. Wait. Shin Myeong-cheol and home run do not belong in the same sentence unless it also has the words "does not hit." In over 1700 career at bats, Shin has exactly 19 homers. Slightly less than 1 homer in every 100 tries. On the season, Shin is sporting a robust .224 slugging %. Park Jin-man finished the night 2-3 with a walk, a double and 3 RBI. The double was the key hit in a 5-run rally in the 3rd inning.

9/4 Roundup and News

SK Wyverns manager, Kim Sung-keun, recorded his 1,000 victory as a KBO manager. He needs only 476 more W's to become the winningest manager in KBO history.

Doosan 6, Hanhwa 5 (10)
W - Jin Ya-kob (2-0), L - Brad Thomas (3-5)

Well, this one only took 10 innings to finish. Gettin' there boys! Gettin' there! Before I go into the recap of this one. I just want to point out Jin's given name, Ya-kob. It's a western name from the bible that's been Koreanized. I had to consult my girlfriend to get an official Korean ruling on this. I guess this guys family is really into the bible.

With the game tied 5-5 with runners on 1st and 2nd with 1 out, Hanhwa called on closer, Brad Thomas, to get them out of a jam. Thomas walked the first batter hed faced, but struck out the next two batters to end the inning. Things got a little heated after a a close 1-2 pitch was called strike 3. Doosan's Hong Seong-heun actually chest bumped the umpire while stomping his feet and crying. In the bottom of the 10th inning, Doosan actually got to Brad Thomas. Lee Song-yeol lead off the inning with a seeing-eye basehit through the left side. Then, Kim Dong-ju struck out looking. With the centerfielder playing in an extreme shift to the right, Lee Dae-su drilled a pitch into the gap in left/center. Lee Song-yeol was able to scamper home to score the winning run.

SK 5, The Heroes 1
W - Kim Won-hyeong (9-4), L - Jeong Won-sam (9-8), S - Jeong Dae-hyeon (20)

Kenny Rayborn was adequate and Jeong Won-sam deserved better. This game was closer than the final indicates. SK only lead 2-1 in the 8th when The Heroes bullpen failed worse than Booster Gold in the JLI days. Yes, I will be using random superhero references for the rest of the year. Rayborn tossed 5 innings(75 pitches, 43 strikes) allowing 1 run on 4 hits and 1 walk with 3 K's. Jeong stuck around for 7 innings(115 pitches, 79 strikes) allowing 2 runs on 8 hits and one walk with 8 K's. One of the hits Jeong gave up didn't stay in the ballpark. SK's Choi Jeong hit a 2-run homer in the 6th inning that would be all the offense the Wyverns would need.

Samsung 6, KIA 5
W - Jeong Hyeon-wook (8-4), L - Lee Beom-seok (7-8), S - Oh Seung-hwan (31)

This was one of those games that Samsung had no business winning, but as a fan, I consider myself lucky to have. Yang Joon-hyeok was the story last night. The aged Samsung slugger hit his 339th KBO homer. Putting him one away from tying the record and 2 away from breaking it. Jang Jong-hoon is the current KBO homerun king. Yang finished the night 3-4 with 2 RBI and 2 runs scored. Yang's homer came in the bottom of the 6th and put the Lions on top for good in this one.

Lotte 11, LG 9
W - Kim Sa-yool (1-0), L - Lee Beom-joon (1-1), S - David Cortes (2)

11-9 makes this game sound close. Lotte was up 8-3 in the 4th inning, but some truly awful relief pitching and a couple fake rallies from LG made this one a little closer than it should have been. Lotte catcher, Kang Min-ho, swung a mighty bat for the Giants last night. Kang finished the night 3-4 with a homer, 4 RBI and 1 run scored. The homer was a 2-run blast and it came during a 4-run rally in the 2nd inning. It was an absolute bomb over the left field wall. David Cortes earned his 2nd KBO save. A few more and he gets a nickname. He reminds me a lot of Rich "El Guapo" Garces. I'm going to try out Jalsaenggin(잘생긴) and see if that sticks. I bet it doesn't.