In the end, what was needed was ‘one room’. Professional baseball Kiwoom Heroes, who were in danger of being wiped out in three home games, put an end to their losing streak thanks to Lim Ji-yeol’s dramatic come-from-behind grand slam in the bottom of the 8th inning.
Kiwoom won a dramatic 7-5 come-from-behind victory against the Lotte Giants at Gocheok Dome in Seoul on the 28th. Kiwoom, who had fallen into a 4-game losing streak since the 24th, narrowly escaped the weekend 3-game sweep through the victory that day. The gap with 7th place Samsung was also maintained at 1 game.메이저놀이터
The atmosphere was thoroughly on Lotte’s side. Recently, with three consecutive victories, they chased the leader LG Twins by one game and the second place SSG Landers by half a game until this day. Even if he missed all the remaining 3 games this month, he was able to secure 3rd place on his own. 2012 was the latest for Lotte to finish May in the top three. Fans who were full of anticipation filled Gocheok Dome for two days in a row, reminiscent of Sajik Stadium in Busan.
Even at the beginning of the 8th inning, Seung-gi was clearly leaning towards Lotte. Starter Na Kyun-an played a salty pitch with 9 strikeouts and only 1 run in 6 innings. The batting line scored 5 points with a single hit, a sacrifice fly, and an active base run. Although the bullpen gave up an extra run in the 7th inning, they still held a 5-2 3-run lead.
It was the cannon that decided the game. Kiwoom, who made up one more point with a sacrifice fly at the bottom of the 8th inning, seemed to be sinking as Hyungjong Lee struck out on three pitches with one out and bases loaded. However, Lim Ji-yeol, who entered the plate immediately after, lifted Yoon Myeong-jun’s 4th fastball and passed it over the middle fence. It was the 3rd gun of the season and the first full gun of his personal career. Kiwoom’s chance of winning, which was only 25% until just before, soared to 92%. Hong Won-ki, director of Kiwoom, also clenched his fists and exclaimed.
Both Kiwoom and Lotte hitters were suffering from a terrible home run drought this season. In the team home run rankings, they ranked 9th and 10th, respectively, and the two teams combined fell short of SSG’s 40 home runs. In this three-game series, neither team had a single home run, but at the most important moment, Lim Ji-yeol’s one shot.
Thanks to Lim Chan-gyu’s 7 scoreless innings, LG defeated the KIA Tigers 7-1 and kept the lead. In defense, a total of seven mistakes were made by both teams, revealing points of improvement. The 7th place Samsung Lions defeated the last place KT Wiz 6-4.
