“We prepared a plan, but….”
South Korea lost its second qualifying game of the 2023 Asian Professional Baseball Championship (APBC) against Japan, 1-0, at the Tokyo Dome in Japan on Sunday.
They were held to a perfect game by Japanese starting pitcher Chihiro Sumida. The Koreans were held perfect through three innings and failed to score a run in the seven innings Sumida was on the mound.
South Korean starter Lee Yi-ri (21-KIA Tigers) matched Sumida with a pitch of his own. He was shaky in the first inning, giving up a walk to the first batter and facing three hits, but didn’t allow a run.
In the second, he retired the first three batters he faced before the first run of the inning. A walk, a hit, and a hit batsman loaded the bases. We got a 6-4-3 double play, but a runner crossed home plate in the middle of it. In the fourth inning, a fastball to the leadoff batter was hit right down the middle for a home run. But he retired the next three batters, and in the fifth, he was hit by a pitch with one out, but a stolen base and a fly ball ended the inning. In the sixth, he struck out three.
After throwing a total of 96 pitches, Lee left the mound in the seventh.
Japan stole two bases against Korea on the day, but both were unsuccessful. Kim Hyung-joon threw out the runners at the plate.
Okabayashi’s stolen base in the first inning was called safe on a close play, but was overturned after video review. In the fifth inning, Kozono caught a low changeup and sprayed the ball hard for the final out.
Kim Hyung-jun returned from military service this season to lead the NC Dinos to a six-game winning streak in fall baseball after serving as the starting catcher for the Hangzhou Asian Games. Since joining the team, he has been referred to as the “second Yang Ji” due to his solid defense and long bat at the plate. In fact, after the wild-card game against the Doosan Bears, Yang personally presented him with a bat.
After the game, manager Hirokazu Ibata said, “We prepared for stolen bases and other tactics, but the Korean catcher’s handling and throwing were excellent,” and added, “Pitching was also harder than it looks in the video. There are parts where (the quick motion) was too fast. This is my mistake, but the players gave it their all. Even if they get an out, I want them to keep going as long as they can.” 토토사이트
“I didn’t expect to get the first two outs. I made a bad throw, but he made a good catch,” he said, adding, “Still, I think it’s meaningful to get the stolen base when (Lee) was struggling.”
Kim Hyung-jun said, “I really wanted to win today against Japan, but I didn’t lose because I wanted to lose. I tried my best to win, but the result was unfortunate.” “Still, I think I gained confidence after today’s game. Tomorrow (Nov. 18) against Chinese Taipei, we will try to win no matter what. I want to get revenge on Japan just like I did against Taiwan in Hangzhou.”