The KIA Tigers completed a winning series after a hard-fought victory, paving the way for a rise to the middle ranks.
On the 15th, KIA recorded a nail-biting 7-6 win against the Lotte Giants in the regular season of the '2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League' held at Gwangju-KIA Champions Field. With this, KIA marked a record of 19 wins and 22 losses, achieving a winning series of 2 wins and 1 loss. Lotte faced a losing series, recording 25 wins, 18 losses, and 2 ties.
Lotte started with pitcher Na Kyun-an. The starting lineup included Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Ko Seung-min (second baseman), Reyes (left fielder), Jeon Jun-woo (designated hitter), Na Seung-yeop (first baseman), Son Ho-young (third baseman), Park Seung-wook (shortstop), Jang Du-seong (center fielder), and Jeong Bo-geun (catcher).
KIA started with Adam Oller on the mound. The starting lineup included Park Chan-ho (shortstop), Oh Seon-woo (first baseman), Kim Do-young (third baseman), Choi Hyung-woo (designated hitter), Kim Sun-bin (second baseman), Lee Woo-sung (left fielder), Han Jun-su (catcher), Kim Ho-ryeong (center fielder), and Choi Won-jun (right fielder).
Lotte scored first. In the 3rd inning, the lead-off batter Jang Du-seong hit a single to center, followed by Jeong Bo-geun's single to left and Yoon Dong-hee's sacrifice bunt, creating a 1 out, 2nd and 3rd base opportunity. Ko Seung-min then hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score the first run. They failed to add more runs with 2 outs and a runner on second.
KIA turned the game around quickly. Following a single to center by Choi Won-jun, an opponent's wild pitch, and a walk to Park Chan-ho, KIA created a no out, 1st and 3rd base opportunity with a stolen base by Choi Won-jun. Oh Seon-woo tied the game with an RBI single to right field, and Kim Do-young continued with a ground ball single off the shortstop to load the bases with no outs.
Ultimately, Choi Hyung-woo hit an infield single to second base, putting KIA ahead 2-1. Kim Sun-bin then hit a 2-RBI single to left field, extending the lead to 4-1. In the 1 out, 2nd and 3rd base situation after Lee Woo-sung's ground ball to shortstop, Han Jun-su's sacrifice fly to center field increased the lead to 5-1.
In the 4th inning, after 1 out, consecutive hits by Park Chan-ho and Oh Seon-woo created a 1 out, 1st and 3rd base opportunity, and Kim Do-young's ground ball to shortstop did not result in a double play, leading to another score.
However, Lotte's counterattack was formidable. In the top of the 6th, lead-off batter Yoon Dong-hee hit a double, and with a fly out by Ko Seung-min to center field, they created a 1 out, 3rd base opportunity. Reyes brought in 1 run with a ground ball to second base, narrowing the gap to 2-6.
Then in the 7th inning, a lead-off single by Na Seung-yeop and a double to left-center by Han Tae-yang created a 1 out, 2nd and 3rd base opportunity, and Jang Du-seong's single to center scored another run. In the continued 1 out, 2nd and 3rd base opportunity, Jeong Bo-geun's ground ball to shortstop closed the gap to 4-6. With 2 outs and a runner on second, Yoon Dong-hee was retired on a ground ball to third base, missing the chance for additional runs.
KIA squashed Lotte's pursuit with the help of Kim Do-young. In the bottom of the 7th, lead-off batter Kim Do-young faced a 2 balls, 2 strikes count and belted a 131 km slider from Lotte's Kim Gang-hyun over the left field for a solo shot, completely blocking Lotte's momentum.
However, Lotte also created an opportunity in the top of the 8th with a walk to lead-off batter Ko Seung-min, where Reyes launched a two-run homer off Jo Sang-woo's 126 km slider. The score tightened to 6-7, trailing by just one run. After 2 outs, Son Ho-young's infield hit kept the opportunity alive with 2 outs and 1st base.
KIA brought in closer Jeong Hae-young, who struck out Han Tae-yang with a swinging strikeout to extinguish the immediate threat. He took the mound again in the top of the 9th, handling Jang Du-seong with a fly out to left, and allowed a sizable fly out to right field that reached the warning track to pinch hitter Jeong Hoon, but it was caught. After 2 outs, Yoon Dong-hee fought through a 12-pitch battle but was struck out swinging, barely securing the team's victory.
Starting pitcher Adam Oller delivered 6 innings, allowing 4 hits, no walks, striking out 7 batters, and yielding 2 earned runs, achieving his 5th win of the season. Oh Seon-woo recorded multiple hits with 1 RBI, Kim Do-young had 2 hits including a critical solo home run with 2 RBIs, and Choi Hyung-woo contributed with 3 hits, 1 RBI, and 1 run, leading the team to victory.
Lotte's starter Na Kyun-an became the losing pitcher after going 5 and 2/3 innings, giving up 10 hits, 2 walks, 3 strikeouts, and allowing 6 earned runs. Jang Du-seong recorded multiple hits, and Reyes contributed 3 RBIs including a home run, but it was insufficient for a comeback.
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