South Korea Cruises Past Thailand via 5-Inning Mercy Rule to Advance to Super Round as Group Leader

Led by manager Ryu Ji-hyun, the South Korean national baseball team easily defeated underdog Thailand, powered by two grand slams, to advance to the super round as the top seed of their group.

The national team defeated Thailand 18-1 in a five-inning mercy rule game during their third Group B preliminary match held today (the 23rd) at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park Baseball Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.

Having previously beaten Taiwan 5-0 and Hong Kong 13-0 (seven-inning mercy rule), South Korea secured three consecutive wins to firmly claim first place in the group.

Carrying the win against Group B runner-up Taiwan, South Korea will play the super round from the 25th to the 26th against Group A winner Japan and runner-up China.

The top two teams from the super round will advance to the final, while the bottom two teams will play for the bronze medal.

Both medal matches will take place on the 27th.

In the 1st inning, with runners on second and third with one out following a walk and a stolen base by Park Jae-hyun (KIA Tigers), a walk by Yoon Dong-hee (Lotte Giants), and an advance hit by Kim Doyoung (KIA), South Korea scored the opening run on an RBI sacrifice fly to right field by Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha Eagles).

Moon Bo-goung (LG Twins) then blasted a two-run homer over the right-field wall to bring the score to 3-0.

In the 2nd inning, after securing a bases-loaded opportunity with no outs through three consecutive hits by Lee Jaehyeon (Samsung Lions), Keonhee (Kiwoom Heroes), and Jung Jun-jae (SSG Landers), Park Jae-hyun hit a grand slam over the right-field wall, instantly widening the gap to 7-0.

In the 3rd inning, three more runs were added via a walk by Lee Jaehyeon and three consecutive hits by Keonhee, Jung Jun-jae, and Park Jae-hyun, pushing the lead to 10-0.

The national team continued to batter the Thai pitching staff in the 4th inning.

Park Jun-soon (Doosan Bears) and Moon Hyun-bin hit consecutive hits, followed by a sacrifice fly by Lee Jaehyeon and RBI hits by Jung Jun-jae and Kim Doyoung, making it 14-0. After the batting order turned over, Park Jun-soon stepped up to the plate and blasted a grand slam over the left-field wall, bringing the score to 18-0.

Under tournament rules, a mercy rule is called if there is a difference of 15 runs or more by the 5th inning, or 10 runs or more by the 7th inning (excluding the final game).

The only blemish for South Korea came in the 5th inning with two outs and a runner on first, when center fielder Kim Ji-chan (Samsung) dropped a fly ball, resulting in one unearned run.

Park Jae-hyun recorded 2 hits in 2 at-bats with 1 home run, 2 walks, 5 RBIs, and 3 runs scored, while Park Jun-soon posted 2 hits in 2 at-bats with 1 home run, 4 RBIs, and 2 runs scored.

The national team's pitching staff, which achieved a team perfect game yesterday against Hong Kong, tightly shut down Thailand's lineup today.

Starting pitcher Oh Won-seok pitched 4 scoreless innings allowing just 1 hit with 7 strikeouts and no walks or hit-by-pitches, while Bae Chan-seung (Samsung) took the mound in the 5th inning, pitching 1 inning and allowing 1 hit and 1 run (unearned).

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.