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Doosan Bears rally past Kiwoom Heroes to snap 2-game skid

Published: 03 Apr. 2025, 09:23

Doosan Bears reliever Lee Young-ha pitches in the seventh inning of a game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

The Doosan Bears clawed their way from an early deficit and capitalized on some sloppy plays by their opponents as they defeated the Kiwoom Heroes 5-3 to snap a two-game losing streak in the KBO on Wednesday.

Starter Choi Seung-yong worked six solid innings, and the Bears took advantage of three errors by the Heroes at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul.

The Bears improved to 3-6-0 (wins-losses-ties), and the Heroes fell to 4-5-0.

The teams traded blows early. Yang Suk-hwan put the Bears on the board with a solo shot to lead off the bottom of the second inning. Yoon tattooed a first-pitch fastball from rookie starter Yoon Hyun for his first home run of 2025.

Lee Ju-hyoung responded for the Heroes with a three-run homer in the top third off Choi, putting his team up 3-1 with his first dinger of the season.

Making his second career start, Yoon came unraveled in the bottom fourth and allowed the Bears to tie things up without a hit.

Oh Myeong-jin of the Doosan Bears gets the first hit of his KBO career in the fourth inning of a game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

After striking out the inning's first batter, Yoon gave up two straight singles. Two batters later, Yoon walked Choo Jae-hyun to load the bases for Kang Seung-ho.

A wild pitch pushed in a run to make it a 3-2 game. Kang then hit a high chopper toward shortstop Kim Tae-jin, who had replaced rookie Eo Joon-seo to begin the fourth inning after Eo had made an error in the second. Kim bobbled the ball and allowed the tying run to score.

Yoon got the hook after walking yet another batter to load the bases for the second time in the inning. The Heroes ended the rally when left fielder Yasiel Puig made a running catch on a fly ball by Yang Eui-ji near the warning track.

Choi, on the other hand, mostly settled in after Lee's big blast. The left-hander struck out the side in the fourth and retired the side in order in the fifth. He then pitched around a two-out single in the sixth, before handing the reins to the bullpen in the seventh with the game knotted at 3-3.

The Heroes stranded runners at the corners in the top seventh, and the Bears made them pay by taking the lead for good in the bottom eighth.

A walk and a single to start the inning set up a sacrifice opportunity for Choo Jae-hyun, whose bunt rolled just in front of the home plate. Catcher Kim Jae-hyun picked it up and threw to third trying to get the pinch runner Lee Yu-chan, but he missed the target badly as Lee scored the go-ahead run.

Two batters later, Kim Jae-hwan hit a soft roller to third that scored speedy Jung Soo-bin from third for a 5-3 lead.

The Doosan Bears stand for a moment of silence ahead of a game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

After middle reliever Lee Young-ha tossed two shutout innings and struck out five, Bears closer Kim Taek-yeon worked a perfect ninth for his third save of the season.

Bears manager Lee Seung-yuop praised the strong work by his trio of pitchers.

"In such cold conditions, it must have been difficult for them to stay on top of their game, but they went after hitters and pulled out this win," Lee said. "The hitters tried to do everything possible to get on base. I expect us to keep getting better moving forward."

Yang Suk-hwan, who has hit at least 20 homers in each of the past four years, said he couldn't wait for weather to get warmer.

"It's nice to finally get my first home run of the year, but I am not yet 100 percent," he said. "I think I will be able to swing the bat better once it gets warmer."

This was the first game of the teams' now-abbreviated midweek series. Their game on Tuesday, along with four others scheduled leaguewide, was canceled as the KBO grieved the death of a fan from a head injury sustained in a freak in-stadium accident from Saturday.

The KBO's mourning period runs through Thursday. Teams will not have cheering squads during this stretch. Before Tuesday's games, players observed a moment of silence and donned black ribbons on their jerseys for the late fan.

Yonhap