“It won’t be a problem.”

South Korea’s baseball team, led by Ryu Jung-il, will take on Chinese Taipei in the second game of Group B at the Hangzhou Asian Games at the Xiaoxing Baseball Stadium in Zhejiang Province, China, on Feb. 2.

A day earlier, South Korea won a 10-0 cold game against Hong Kong in eight innings.온라인카지노

The bats came alive late while the mound was steady. Starting pitcher Won Tae-in pitched four scoreless innings, followed by Jung Woo-young (1 inning), Choi Ji-min (1 inning), Jang Hyun-seok (1 inning), and Park Young-hyun (1 inning).

The offense scored a run in the first inning and two more in the fourth, but couldn’t get anything going until a seven-run eighth inning. Hong Kong’s pitchers threw slow balls in the 100-kilometer range, which made timing difficult.

Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop, who has been a fixer in international tournaments during his career, talked about the Hong Kong game before the Kiwoom Heroes game on Feb. 2, saying, “They were throwing the 100-kilometer ball well.”

South Korea’s players celebrate after winning the baseball group B match between South Korea and Hong Kong at the Hangzhou Asian Games at the Shaoxing Baseball and Softball Sports Center Stadium 1 near Hangzhou, east China’s Zhejiang province, on Jan. 1.
While there is a belief that slower pitches are easier to hit, it is not as easy as one might think for players who have adapted to fast pitches to generate power. Moreover, this team is composed of players under the age of 25 or in their fourth year of playing for the national team, which makes it even more difficult to cope with the lack of experience.

After a thrilling win over Hong Kong, South Korea will face Chinese Taipei on February 2. A must-win for the gold medal. The Chinese Taipei team is also eager to win the gold medal, with military service benefits at stake. The team is said to have a solid lineup with many minor league players. In particular, the pitching staff has a pitcher who throws fastballs in the 150 kilometers range, which is a far cry from the previous game against Hong Kong.

The starting pitcher against Taiwan is Lin Yumin. Lin is a 2003-born prospect who plays in the minor leagues for the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball. In 11 games at Double-A this year, Lin went 5-2 with a 4.28 ERA. He throws a fastball in the mid-to-high 90s.

But Lee has faith in his national team players. “(Korean players) have been hitting 150km fastballs all year long. There will be no problem,” he said.

Moon Dong-ju, starting pitcher for the national team, pitches during the practice game between the Hangzhou Asian Games baseball team and Sangsung at the Gocheok Sky Dome on Saturday. Gocheok = Heo Sang-wook 기자wook@sportschosun.com/2023.09.26/
South Korea, meanwhile, went with Moon Dong-ju as its starting pitcher. Moon, who joined Hanwha as a first-round pick in 2022, is a fireballer with a fastball in the low 150s. This season, she went 8-8 with a 3.72 ERA in 23 games.

Korea’s starting lineup is Kim Hye-sung (second base), Choi Ji-hoon (center field), Noh Si-hwan (third base), Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter), Moon Bo-kyung (first base), Yoon Dong-hee (right field), Park Sung-sung (shortstop), Kim Hyung-joon (catcher), and Kim Sung-yoon (left field).