*This content was translated by AI.
The Korean national baseball team is happy after winning the Orix match on the 3rd.
Korean baseball is unusual. It feels good. With this level of firepower, the quarterfinals seem to be possible. It feels completely different from three years ago. The national team won a pleasant victory in the final warm-up match held two days before the 2026 World Baseball (WBC) tournament. Above all, the hot home run shot stood out.
The Korean baseball team, led by head coach Ryu Ji-hyun, secured an 8-5 victory after hitting 10 hits, including three home runs, in the official 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) warm-up match against the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Orix Buffaloes at Kyocera Dome in Osaka, Japan on the 3rd. Kim Do-young hit a three-run home run, and Shay Witcombe and Ahn Hyun-min each hit a solo shot.
The national team had a 3-3 draw with the Hanshin Tigers in its first warm-up match the previous day (2nd). With this victory, the Korean national team ended the warm-up match with NPB teams with no loss (1 win and 1 draw) twice.
Clearly, the atmosphere is different from the 2023 WBC tournament, which was eliminated in the first round. At that time in March 2023, Korea played two warm-up matches with NPB teams ahead of the tournament. The result was disappointing. At that time, he suffered a shock defeat of 2-4 against Orix’s second-tier power. It then won the Hanshin Tigers 7-4 in the warm-up match, but it was the 2023 WBC national team that faced a chaotic situation, with Ko Woo-seok injured earlier.
But this time, the atmosphere is different. Including the results of the warm-up match in Okinawa, Japan, the national team’s performance in this practice match was five wins, one draw and one loss. In Okinawa, he played five practice games with KBO league teams, including the Samsung Lions, Hanwha Eagles, and KIA Tigers.
Ko Woo-seok, who was injured in a warm-up match with the Orix Buffaloes during the 2023 WBC tournament. /Photo = News 1
Now, the national team will move to Tokyo, play the first match against the Czech Republic, which is considered weak, at 7 p.m. on the 5th after a short schedule of official press conferences along with adaptation training at the Tokyo Dome on the 4th. After taking a day off on the 6th, the national team will play a doomed Korea-Japan match at 7 p.m. on the 7th.
After the Korea-Japan match, they will face Taiwan at noon on the 8th, the next day after taking a short break. In fact, it is expected that South Korea’s advance to the second round will be determined in the match against Taiwan. And on the 9th, he will play in the final round of the first round against Australia at 7 p.m. If they are in Group C, they will head to Miami, USA, where the quarterfinals will be held.
On this day, Korea is Kim Do-young (designated hitter, KIA Tigers)-The starting lineup was set up in the order of Germay Jones (left fielder, Detroit Tigers), Lee Jung-hoo (center fielder, San Francisco Giants), Ahn Hyun-min (right wing, KT Wiz), Moon Bo-kyung (first baseman, LG Twins), Shay Witcom (third baseman, Houston Astros), Kim Hye-sung (second baseman, LA Dodgers), Park Dong-won (catcher, LG) and Kim Joo-won (striker, NC Dinos).
Instead of Kim Do-young, who had previously played as a third baseman against Hanshin, heading to the designated hitter, Witcom took over the defense of the third base. In addition, Kim Joo-won, who was excluded from the starting list the previous day, started as shortstop. Ahn Hyun-min, who flew with an RBI double in the match against Hanshin, was placed in the fourth batting order. Instead, Whitcomb, who had been silent for three at-bats against Hanshin, went down from four to six.
South Korea’s starting pitcher was Korean Major Leaguer Deene Dunning. Dunning is a right-hander who has taken the mound in 136 games in the big league with a record of 28-32 and a 4.44 ERA.
On this day, South Korea boasted a good batting sense as Kim Do-young hit a home run in two consecutive games. In addition, Ahn Hyun-min also raged with three hits and two RBIs, including one home run. Witcom also adjusted his bat sense by drawing his first arch since joining the national team. Jones also played a multi-base game. Dunning, who started, pitched three innings with no hits, no four outs, no strikeouts, and no runs.
Ahn Hyun-min. /Photo = News 1
Ko Woo-seok. /Photo = News 1
South Korea dominated Orix’s lead by scoring six points in the top of the second inning when the two teams were 0-0. The leadoff batter Ahn Hyun-min’s hit to the middle and Moon Bo-kyung and Kim Hye-sung’s consecutive walks quickly gave him a chance to load the bases with one out. Here, Park Dong-won broke the balance of zero by hitting a timely hit to the left. Then, when Kim Joo-won (NC) grounded out to the infield, the third baseman homered and scored an additional point. The score was 2-0.
Two outs and a chance for first and third base. Here, “Next-generation major leaguer” Kim Do-young burst a thrilling shot. He hit a slider at the end of a full count against Orix starter Raiku Katayama and fired a large three-run shot with a distance of 125m over the left-center fence. It was the moment when Kim Do-young tasted a home run in two consecutive games following the match against Hanshin the previous day. South Korea continued to create chances for Jones and Lee Jung-hoo to get on base with a hit ball and a walk, respectively, with two outs and runners on first and second bases. Here, Ahn Hyun-min’s timely double fell inside the left-field line. In this way, South Korea scored six points in the second inning alone, taking the lead early.
In the bottom of the third inning, there were two errors in the infield, putting them on the verge of first and third bases with no outs. However, Dunning showed his outstanding crisis management ability and put out the urgent fire without losing a point.
However, Korea shook for a while when Dunning went down the mound. In the bottom of the fourth inning, second pitcher Song Seung-ki allowed a walk to Bob Seymour, a hit to Hirooka Taishi, and a hit ball to Sugisawa Ryu, causing a two-out bases-loaded crisis. In the end, he bowed his head after being hit by Mune Yuma’s two-run timely hit. Go Woo-seok took over the mound continuously. However, even Ko Woo-seok dedicated a walk to Gurebayashi Gottaro, making the score 6-3.
South Korea brought the tide again in the top of the fifth inning. It burst when a big shot was crucial. Witcom hit a high fastball by Orix left-hander Nobuyoshi Yamada to draw a solo arch over the fence in the middle. It was Witcom who made his first hit after joining the Korean national team with a long hit, and a home run. The score was 7-3, four points apart.
South Korea’s Ko Woo-suk, Kim Young-kyu and Cho Byung-hyun took good care of the team with one scoreless inning from the 5th to the 7th inning. But the beginning of the eighth inning of fate. Yoo Young-chan, who took the mound, was shaken. Yoo Young-chan dedicated one run to Ryoto Kita with a sacrifice fly to center field with one out and runners on the second and third bases. He then gave up a timely hit to Tomoya Noguchi. The score was narrowed to 7-5, two points, but that was it. Rather, South Korea sealed the game in the top of the ninth inning with Ahn Hyun-min not missing a real pitch in the middle of Orix Takashima Taito, and hitting a solo shot over the left-center wall.
Kim Do-young of the Korean baseball team hits a three-run home run in the bottom of the second inning against the Orix Buffaloes at Kyocera Dome in Osaka, Japan on the 3rd.
Kim Do-young hits a home run and heads home laughing.
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*This content was translated by AI.
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