Yang Hyeon-jong (35) and Lee Eui-ri (21, KIA Tigers) returned as aces.

KIA won 8-1 in the 2023 professional baseball demonstration game against Doosan Bears held at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field on the 19th. With this victory, KIA recorded 3 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw in demonstration games, maintaining a tie for 4th place with SSG Landers. Doosan fell to 5th place with 2 wins, 3 losses and 1 draw.

This day’s game drew attention even before the start as Yang Hyeon-jong and Lee Eui-ri’s comeback match. The two pitchers were selected together for the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) baseball team held this month and returned together after finishing their schedule in Japan.메이저사이트

Yang Hyeon-jong and Lee Eui-ri made their first bullpen pitch on the 17th after entering Korea on the 14th, and climbed the mound for the first demonstration game that day. Even though it was an exhibition game, 5067 fans visited the baseball field to see the first appearance of the two pitchers. 

Fans’ expectations were rewarded with a good fight. Yang Hyeon-jong threw only 45 pitches in 3 and 1/3 innings and played well with only one hit. The fastball (26 pitches) recorded a maximum speed of 144 km, and the changeup (11 pitches), slider (6 pitches), and curve (2 pitches) were also thrown evenly.

Lee Eui-ri was not as perfect as Yang Hyeon-jong. After pitching for relief in the top of the 5th inning, he threw a 149 km/h fastball into the middle of his first opponent, Doosan Shin Seong-hyun, and allowed a solo home run. He didn’t waver any more. He put in a fastball (34 pitches) with a maximum speed of 151 km per hour and an average speed of 147 km per hour without a circle, recording 4 hits (1 home run), 2 walks, 3 strikeouts and 1 run in 3 innings.

Doosan starter Choi Seung-yong’s good fight was also not easy. Since 2021, when he was a rookie, he has been attracting attention as a candidate for Doosan’s 5th starter, and he pitched well that day with 2 hits, 1 walk, 7 strikeouts and 2 runs in 4 and 1/3 innings. In particular, he left a strong impression by striking out 6 batters in a row, from the second hitter Byeon Woo-hyuk in the 2nd inning to the first batter Kim Do-young in the 4th inning. He recorded a maximum speed of 146 km with a fastball (43 pitches), and struck out evenly with a curveball (13 pitches) and slider (11 pitches).

The game, which had been tight due to the good pitching of the starting pitchers of both teams, tilted to KIA in the beginning of the 5th inning. KIA opened the door with a double hit by Byeon Woo-hyeok, the lead hitter, against Choi Seung-yong, who had been throwing one hit and perfect pitch until the 4th inning. KIA picked out a walk by Kim Kyu-seong after one out. Doosan changed the mound to Kim Ho-jun, but Joo Hyo-sang hit and Hong Jong-pyo walked to tie the game. 

Kim Do-young, a 2nd year big prospect, became the protagonist of the reversal. Kim Do-young attacked the ball at a speed of 135 km per hour, which was controlled by the third pitcher Ko Bong-jae into the low strike zone, and connected it with a timely hit with 2 RBIs.

KIA, which had the upper hand, defeated Doosan with two home runs. At the end of the 6th inning, KIA lead hitter Socrates Brito ran away with a solo home run with a superior distance of 120m against Doosan Kim Myung-shin. In the 8th inning, the batting line exploded. KIA added two points with Kim Do-young, Lee Chang-jin, and Lee Woo-sung’s consecutive hits and Hwang Dae-in’s sacrifice fly. Then, Byun Woo-hyuk, who opened the fire in the 5th inning, put a wedge in. He completed the KIA lead 8-1 with a 110m two-run home run that went over the left fence, attacking a slider error thrown by Doosan Kim Ji-yong in a situation with 1 out and 2 base.

In the KIA, Kwak Do-gyu scored 2/3 scoreless innings before Lee Eui-ri, and in the 8th and 9th innings, Jeon Sang-hyun (1 inning scoreless) and Jung Hae-young (1 inning scoreless score) blocked the back door. In terms of batting order, Kim Do-young (2 hits in 4 at-bats, 2 RBIs, 1 run) and Byun Woo-hyeok (2 hits in 4 at-bats, 1 home run, 2 RBIs, 2 runs) led the team to record 9 hits and 2 home runs, overwhelming Doosan (5 hits, 1 home run) in both hits. .