South Korea beat out Taiwan 11-8, scoring three runs in extra-innings yesterday to take third place in Pool A of the World Baseball Classic at Seoul’s Gocheok Sky Dome, while consigning the visitors to last place in the group with three losses this week.
With the game deadlocked at 8-8 in the tenth inning, Taiwan elected to go with its designated closer Chen Hung-wen.
Korean catcher Yang Eui-Ji scored the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly, then pinch-hitter Kim Tae-kyun tagged the losing pitcher Chen with a two-run homer for the hosts to take the lead.
Photo: AFP
Korean closer Oh Seung-hwan was pivotal to the thrilling win, as he got out of a jam in the ninth, and shut the door in the tenth inning to preserve the 11-8 triumph.
Taiwan now need to play qualification games in the next WBC tournament.
Both teams crashed out of the WBC on previous days, when Taiwan and South Korea lost to the Netherlands and Israel.
South Korea jumped out an early six-run lead by the top of second inning against Taiwan’s second pitcher Kuo Chun-lin and looked to have knocked out the visitors for good.
After getting a run in the opening frame, the hosts blew the game wide open with key runs batted in by Seo Geon-chang, Lee Yong-kyu and Son Ah-seop, along with a sacrifice fly by Min Byung-hun to score five runs to get ahead 6-0.
Taiwan replied in the bottom half of the inning, to open the account by first baseman Lin Yi-chuan scoring on a fielder’s choice, then Hu-Chin-lung delivered a hit to push two runners home, cutting the deficit to 6-3.
In the fourth inning, both teams’ fired-up batters continued the assault, with both sides grabbing two runs to make it 8-5.
Taiwan chased South Korea all the way, and got two runs on two RBI-singles to close the gap at 8-6 in the sixth frame.
Shortstop Chen Yung-chi singled to drive in a run to tie up the game at 8-8 in the seventh inning.
Israel, dubbed the Cinderella team, continued their amazing run with a 4-2 win over the Netherlands to top Pool A at the conclusion of first-round competition, with “Dutch Oranje” in second on two wins and one loss.
Jason Marquis, a 15-year veteran pitcher in US Major League Baseball who retired from the Cincinnati Reds in 2005, pocketed the win for his starting assignment with only one inning.
His teammates gave him all the support needed by plating three runs in the opening frame, and sent Israel on their way to take their third consecutive win.
In that early assault, Israel batters Nate Freiman, Zach Borenstein and Ryan Lavarnway each knocked in a run with men on bases to rattle starting pitcher Rob Cordemans, who played in Taiwan’s pro league with the Uni-President Lions in 2007.
The Netherlands replied with a run, when outfielder Randolph Oduber came home on a fielder’s choice in the third inning.
Then in the sixth frame, Israel added an insurance run when Borenstein grounded into a double play, but Ty Kelly scored from third base.
Taiwanese Hsu Le on Tuesday won the women’s 100m hurdles at the Summer Deaflympics in Caxias do Sul, Brazil, snagging Taiwan’s first gold medal at this year’s Games. The 19-year-old hurdler finished in 13.91 seconds, breaking the Deaflympics record of 14.20 seconds. Hsu already holds the world deaf record for the women’s 100m hurdles, which she secured at the biennial National Athletics Championships in New Taipei City in 2020 with a time of 13.19 seconds. The Deaflympics is her first international competition. On Sunday, she won a bronze medal in the women’s 100m, finishing in 12.31 seconds. She is also to compete in
Being shot in both eyes and completely blinded did not stop Zion Ricks-Gaines from skateboarding. It made him want to do it even more. “I still want to go pro, I still want to accomplish being a professional skateboarder,” the 19-year-old said as he readied a kickflip at a skate park in San Francisco. He wants to share that enthusiasm with everyone he meets. “I want to start more skate after-school programs for students. I feel like I wouldn’t have really looked in that direction if I had my sight,” he said. Ricks-Gaines’ life was derailed outside a bar late last year when a
ROME LOVE AFFAIR: Novak Djokovic has never lost before the quarter-finals at the tournament and is now just three victories shy of joining the 1,000 match-wins club Novak Djokovic’s love affair with Rome continued as the five-time champion picked up his 60th victory at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia with a 6-3, 6-2 success over Aslan Karatsev on Tuesday. However, women’s US Open champion Emma Raducanu was forced to retire from her first round against Bianca Andreescu, still struggling with a back injury that she picked up in Madrid last week. Djokovic has never lost before the quarter-finals at the tournament and is now just three victories shy of joining the 1,000 match-wins club. “He probably has the biggest calf we have in tennis. Very strong guy, just solid from the
TATUM STEPS UP: The Boston Celtics forced Game 7 against the Milwaukee Bucks, with Jayson Tatum outdueling Giannis Antetokounmpo with the season on the line The Golden State Warriors on Friday grabbed 70 rebounds on the way to eliminating the Memphis Grizzlies 110-86 to advances to face either the Phoenix Suns or the Dallas Mavericks in a best-of-seven battle for the West. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green are cherishing this playoff run a little more given that they spent the past two years watching the post-season instead of in their familiar position of chasing championships. Now, with those experienced faces and a cast of new stars, the Warriors are headed to another Western Conference Finals and need just four more wins to give themselves a