The Doosan Bears have forgotten how to lose again.
Doosan won 8-3 in the ‘2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League’ game against the KIA Tigers held at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field on the 17th, thanks to starter Raul Alcantara’s good pitching, impeccable pitching, and Yang Seok-hwan’s 4 RBI performance. They secured at least 5th place with 6 consecutive wins. Following an 11-game winning streak at the end of the first half, they went on to win 6 games in a row again. KIA suffered 4 consecutive losses, showing defensive anxiety and lack of concentration.
It was a match between KIA Thomas Panoni and Doosan Raul Alcantara as foreign aces. Panoni pitched well against Doosan, allowing no runs in 6 innings in one game. Alcantara was a killer with 1 earned run in 18 innings and an ERA of 0.50 in 3 games against KIA. He expected a tight pitching battle, but surprisingly it turned out to be a batting battle.
KIA failed to take advantage of the opportunity with one out and first and second bases in the bottom of the first inning. Doosan took a 1-0 lead with two outs and Kang Seung-ho’s left-handed solo shot. Kang Seung-ho hit a single even with one out in the 4th inning, and displayed his spirit by hitting 6 consecutive at-bats, including a reverse natural cycling hit on the 15th. His hitting streak came to a halt when he hit a ground ball to second base in the 6th inning. He nearly got a cycling hit for the second straight day when he hit a double in the eighth inning.
KIA also tied the game in the bottom of the second토토사이트 inning with Kim Sun-bin’s single to third base and Byun Woo-hyuk’s left-handed hit with one out followed by Han Jun-su’s right-handed hit. However, in the ensuing 1st and 2nd bases, Kim Do-young retired due to a double play at shortstop and failed to score an additional point. In the third inning, leadoff hitter Choi Won-jun hit a double to right-center, but Na Seong-beom and Choi Hyeong-woo struck out and Socrates retired with a straight hit.
Doosan, which escaped the crisis, added one point with one out in the third inning thanks to Jo Su-haeng’s kick. He placed an exquisite bunt in front of the third baseman and touched first base first with a sprint and Hessfirst sliding. Here again, they took advantage of KIA’s mistake. With 2 outs, KIA third baseman Byun Woo-hyuk missed Jae-ho Kim’s batted ball, taking advantage of the opportunity, and Seok-hwan Yang brought in Jo Soo-haeng with a left-handed hit.
Doosan ran away with a 3-1 lead in the top of the 5th inning when Park Joon-young hit a left-handed solo shot. He lived up to the mercenary skills of manager Lee Seung-yeop, who hired him instead of Kim Jae-hwan. Then, Jo Soo-haeng hit a heavy hit and Su-bin Jeong hit a surprise bunt in front of the catcher. Following Kim Jae-ho’s sent bunt, Yang Seok-hwan brought in two runners with a double that hit the center wall, widening the lead to 5-1. Panoni was hit by Jo Su-haeng and Jeong Soo-bin’s bunts and quick feet.
The flow seemed to be over, but KIA also had a shot. With two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, Choi Won-jun reached base with a heavy hit, and Na Seong-beom used a superior two-run gun to chase the score 3-5. It was Archie’s 18th season. From the 6th inning, KIA started to chase by removing Panoni and adding Yoon Jung-hyeon and Kim Dae-yu. Panoni recorded 8 hits (2 home runs) and 5 runs (4 earned) in 5 innings. The batting lineup failed to capitalize on the opportunity to load the bases with two outs in the ninth inning.
Doosan also took advantage of KIA’s mistakes. In the top of the 7th inning, leadoff hitter Jeong Soo-bin hit a ground ball in front of the pitcher, but KIA pitcher Kim Dae-yu’s bad throw to first base allowed him to reach second base without blood. Following Kim Jae-ho’s sent bunt, Yang Seok-hwan was called in with a timely hit that hit the left wall. Seok-Hwan Yang led the batting lineup on this day with 3 hits and 4 RBIs. In the 8th inning, when Kang Seung-ho reached base with a double, Cho Soo-haeng came in with a timely hit and put a wedge in the game. In the 9th inning, Yang Eui-ji fired a solo shot.
Starting pitcher Alcantara allowed 8 hits, 1 walk, and 3 runs in 6 innings and earned his 13th win of the season. Working with Yang Eui-ji, they continued their winning streak by allowing the least number of runs against the KIA batting line. Kim Myung-shin easily deleted 3 outs in the 7th inning. When Hong Kun-hee brought the bases loaded with two outs in the 9th inning, Jeong Cheol-won put an end to the game.