The Samsung Lions have won two straight games.
Samsung won the 13th game of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League against SSG Landers 5-4 at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on Nov. 11. Foreign starter David Buchanan didn’t get the win, but he pitched six innings of two-run ball, scoring a valuable run off Seo Jin-yong in the top of the ninth before Oh Seung-hwan preserved the victory.
SSG’s starting lineup was Choo Shin-soo (designated hitter), Kim Kang-min (center field), Choi Joo-hwan (first base), Choi Jung (third base), Park Sung-sung (shortstop), Kim Sung-hyun (second base), Han Yu-seom (right field), Cho Hyung-woo (catcher), and Choi Ji-hoon (left field).
Samsung’s batting order was Kim Hyun-jun (center fielder), Kim Sung-yoon (right fielder), Koo Ja-uk (designated hitter), Kang Min-ho (catcher), Pirela (left fielder), Ryu Ji-hyuk (third baseman), Kang Kang-ul (second baseman), Oh Jae-il (first baseman), and Lee Jae-hyun (shortstop).
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The first run was scored by SSG, the brothers born in 1982!
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SSG scored the first run. In the bottom of the first inning, leadoff hitter Choo Shin-soo singled to right field, and No. 2 hitter Kim Kang-min hit a double over the left field fence. The opponent was Buchanan, who was strong against SSG, but the oldest brothers, born in 1982, created a scoring opportunity.
Choi Ju-hwan hit a sacrifice fly to right field, allowing Choo Shin-soo to cross the plate from third. Choi then drew a walk, and Park Sung-ho hit a grounder in front of the second baseman. Choi was thrown out at second base, but in the meantime, Kim Kang-min crossed home plate to make it 2-0.
After giving up two runs in the first inning, Buchanan was on the mound until the sixth inning without allowing another run. He got a triple in the second inning and gave up an infield single to Kim Kang-min in the third, but retired the next three batters to end the inning without allowing a run.
The bats came alive in the sixth inning as Buchanan was held to two runs. SSG left-hander Oh Won-seok, who had pitched well through three scoreless innings, was finally exploited. 안전놀이터
In the fourth inning, Kim Sung-yoon led off with an infield single in front of the third baseman and Koo Ja-rook followed with a walk. Kang Min-ho hit a grounder in front of the catcher, but Kim Sung-yoon and Koo Ja-rook advanced one more base. With runners on second and third, Pirelli hit a two-run double to tie the game.
Buchanan’s most pitches in a game since joining the KBO was 119. Last month on May 13 against the Gwangju KIA and last year on May 14 against the Daegu Doosan. He threw 129 pitches against SSG that day.
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Game flipped! Second-year infielder Lee Jae-hyun hits double-digit home runs for the first time in his career.
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The game turned in the fifth inning. After first baseman Oh Jae-il struck out, second-year infielder and No. 9 hitter Jae-hyun Lee took advantage of a 140-kilometer-per-hour fastball from Oh Won-seok for a solo home run over the left-center field fence.
It was the first double-digit home run for Lee, who is expected to be a 2022 first-round pick. After Lee, Kim Hyun-jun was retired on a grounder to the pitcher, and Kim Sung-yoon followed with a double to left-center. Koo Ja-rook followed with an RBI single to left-center to make it 4-2.
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After Buchanan was sent down, the game was tied again.
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After Buchanan pitched six innings of two-run ball and took a 4-2 lead in the seventh, the game was turned over to the bullpen. Lee Jae-ik pitched a scoreless inning, followed by Kim Tae-hoon in the eighth.
SSG easily defeated