‘Val’ and ‘Austin’ lead LG to victory over Jamsil rivals.
The LG Twins defeated the Doosan Bears in the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League on July 19 at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul, South Korea. In the ninth Jamsil rivalry game of the season, LG won 16-7. LG has won four straight games and improved to 5-4 against Doosan this season.
On this day, LG struggled early on. Doosan starter Keisho Shirakawa walked to load the bases with one out in the first inning, but Kim Hyun-soo hit a ground ball that narrowly avoided a double play to score a run. After surviving the first inning with one run, Doosan turned the game around in the top of the third inning with a four-run big inning.
It’s early in the game, and things could easily go south. But LG had Austin. Austin stepped to the plate for the second time with the bases loaded in the bottom of the third inning, and after a seven-pitch, full-count battle with Shirakawa, he launched a solo shot. It was a technical home run, a slider over the right-field wall.
After Austin’s homer set the tone, LG scored one run in the top of the fourth inning, but took advantage of Doosan’s mound troubles to score four runs in the bottom of the inning to put the game out of reach. After an infield single and two walks loaded the bases, No. 9 Shin Min-jae (RBI) and No. 1 Hong Chang-ki (RBI) hit back-to-back RBI singles to tie the game. However, Moon Sung-ju was able to get a walk-off single with the bases loaded to tie the game.
Despite the comeback, the one-run lead was not reassuring. Despite getting a much-needed break due to the rainy season, LG’s bullpen has been a problem all season long. Doosan, on the other hand, had a solid pitching staff. LG needed to make up some ground.
LG scored three valuable runs in the bottom 파워볼게임 of the sixth inning to tilt the balance of the game in their favor. The runs came from Val and Austin.
In the bottom of the sixth, leadoff hitter Shin Min-jae led off with a walk and stole second base against intense defense. He then advanced to third on a wild pitch by Hong Chang-ki with his quick feet. Kim Bum-seok came on to pinch-hit for Moon Sung-joo, and Doosan tried to evolve by bringing in pinch-hitter Hong Gun-hee.
However, with Shin Min-jae at third base, who can reach home on even the deepest of fly balls, Hong was unable to make an impact and eventually gave way to Kim Bum-seok. LG manager Yeom Kyung-yup brought in Choi Seung-min to pinch-hit for Kim, who promptly stole second base with his quick feet.
And that’s where Austin came in. Austin was 2-for-5 against Hong, and both of his hits were home runs. After a seven-pitch battle with Hong, Austin unleashed his home run arsenal once again. It was the moment when LG broke Doosan’s will to chase and took the win.
Shin Min-jae’s quick feet made the difference when it mattered most, pinch-hitter Choi Seung-min’s feet put pressure on the Doosan mound, and Austin, the team’s main gun, finished it off with a cannon. The sixth inning was a clear demonstration of how a center fielder’s presence and speed can win games.
The sixth inning was also a clear example of why Yoon Kyung-yeop’s team hasn’t given up on “running baseball,” even though they’ve struggled with a lot of baserunners.