KT Wiz defeated the Kiwoom Heroes to complete a sweep and win their second consecutive series.
KT Wiz, coached by Lee Kang-cheol, won the sixth game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against Kiwoom 3-0 at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on Friday. With two straight wins and a second consecutive winning series, KT has taken the ninth-ranked Hanwha Eagles by storm.
KT’s starting pitcher,안전놀이터 Uhm Sang-baek, pitched six innings of four-hit ball, one walk and four strikeouts to earn his third win of the season. The bullpen that came up afterward also kept the game close. At the plate, Park went 3-for-3 with a home run. Anthony Alford and Jang Sung-woo also added multi-hit efforts. Newcomer Lee Ho-yeon drove in the winning run.
Uhm Sang-baek picked up his third win of the season. Photo by Kim Young-gu
Kiwoom’s batting lineup was silent again after the previous day. Kim Hye-sung had two hits and Edison Russell, Lee Won-seok, and Lim Ji-yeol had one hit. Starter Eric Yokishi lasted five innings, allowing two runs on nine hits, but was unable to escape the bitter taste of defeat.
KT’s starting lineup was Kang Baek-ho (designated hitter), Kim Sang-soo (shortstop), Anthony Alford (left field), Park Byung-ho (first base), Jang Sung-woo (catcher), Kim Min-hyuk (center field), Park Kyung-soo (second base), Lee Ho-yeon (third base), and Hong Hyun-bin (right field).
Kiwoom started with Lee Jung-hoo (center fielder), Lim Ji-yeol (left fielder), Kim Hye-sung (designated hitter), Edison Russell (shortstop), Lee Won-seok (first baseman), Lee Hyung-jong (right fielder), Kim Hui-jip (third baseman), Song Sung-moon (second baseman), and Kim Dong-heon (catcher).
KT took the lead in the second inning. With runners on first and third, Lee Ho-yeon’s infield single scored Kim Min-hyuk, who was on third base. Kiwoom was unfortunate to miss calls from Lim Ji-yeol and Lee Jung-hoo.
KT added another run in the third. After leadoff hitter Kim Sang-soo singled and stole second, Alford followed with an RBI single.
Park had his first three-hit game in two years. Photo courtesy of KT Wiz
Kiwoom remained locked in with Uhm Sang-baek until the fifth inning. Except for Kim Hye-sung, everyone was silent. In the seventh inning, Kim drew back-to-back walks off Uhm Sang-baek to put runners on first and second with nobody out, but he was stranded on a double and a grounder.
Instead, KT scored one more run in the seventh. Park Kyung-soo led off with a double. Lee Ho-yeon hit a grounder to the first baseman, and first baseman Lee Won-seok tried to catch the pinch runner, Lee Sang-ho, who was heading to third base, but made a bad throw. Lee rounded third base and came home.
KT’s Park Young-hyun, who came on in the seventh inning, pitched two clean innings. The Kiwoom bullpen also exerted itself, but the bats were silent. In the ninth inning, Kim Jae-yoon came on and pitched a clean inning. It was a victory for the home fans.