After watching the LG Twins clinch first place in the regular season for the first time in 29 years, the Lotte Giants sang a victory song in their own backyard.
Lotte swept visiting LG 8-1 in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on Monday.
A loss on the day would have confirmed their elimination from the postseason regardless of the outcome of their remaining games, but Lotte was able to breathe a sigh of relief.
LG received the news of its first-place finish in the regular season on the bus while traveling to Sajik Stadium in Busan on March 3, and the team sought Lotte’s understanding and held a victory ceremony after the game on March 4.
Five days later, they won at Jamsil Stadium, which was packed with 22,807 fans for the Hangeul national holiday.
In the top of the second inning, Lotte scored two runs on RBI singles by Han Dong-hee with runners on first and second and a sacrifice bunt by Jeong Dae-sun, taking advantage of throwing errors by LG catcher Kim Ki-yeon and first baseman Kim Bum-seok.
With runners on second and third, Son Sung-bin doubled, and when Park Seung-wook’s sacrifice bunt left Kim Ki-yeon at second base, the LG bench immediately removed Kim and brought in Heo Do-hwan.
In the sixth inning, Yoon Dong-hee’s RBI single with runners on second and third brought in a run.
Yoon, who had just returned home from the Asian Games in Hangzhou with a gold medal, pinch-hit for Kim Min-seok in the second inning and added an RBI single in the sixth.
In the seventh, leadoff hitter Jeon Jun-woo hit his 17th home run of the season and combined with RBI singles from Jung Dae-sun and Ahn Kwon-soo to extend the lead to 8-1.
Lotte starter Shim Jae-min kept the LG bats in check with 5 1/3 innings of 82 pitches, four hits (one home run), one walk, and one run, tying his career-high in innings pitched to improve to 3-1 on the season.
LG had to settle for a home run in the second inning off Lotte starter Shim Jae-min, the first home run of his professional career. 파워볼분석