(LEAD) Nexen defeats LG to reach brink of baseball championship series
(ATTN: ADDS Game 4 starters at bottom)
By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- The Nexen Heroes defeated the LG Twins 6-2 on the road to reach the brink of the championship series in South Korean baseball, powered by two homers from the heart of their lineup.
Kang Jung-ho and Yoo Han-joon each hit a solo home run, and the offense went off for four runs in the fifth inning, as the Heroes took a 2-1 series lead in the best-of-five second round at Seoul's Jamsil Stadium. They now sit within a victory of reaching the Korean Series. The Heroes, who joined the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) in 2008, have never played in the Korean Series.
The Heroes can finish off the Twins in Game 4, set for Friday back at Jamsil.
Kang, the No. 5 hitter, gave the Heroes an early lead in the top of the second with a solo shot off LG starter Cory Riordan, driving a 1-1 offering over the center field wall.
It was the first career postseason home run for Kang, who hit 40 home runs in the regular season to set a new KBO single-season record for a shortstop.
The Twins tried to rally in the bottom of the second, but Brad Snyder and Oh Ji-hwan were stranded after hitting back-to-back two-out singles.
The Heroes went further out in front in the fifth, adding four runs on five hits.
They opened the inning with two straight singles, and Lee Sung-yul drove in a run with a double to right center.
Park Dong-won then followed up with a double of his own, sending it over the head of right fielder Lee Jin-young to bring home two more runs for a 4-0 advantage.
Park's double chased starter Cory Riordan from the game. Facing reliever Lim Jung-woo, Vinny Rottino, in his first start this postseason, hit Nexen's third double of the inning and made it 5-0 for the visitors.
The Twins loaded the bases with one out in the fifth, but could only muster a run on a sacrifice fly by Jeong Seong-hoon.
With runners on second and third, pinch hitter Chae Eun-seong hit a pop fly to shallow right, and first baseman Park Byung-ho made a fine running grab in foul territory.
Yoo Han-joon, from the third spot, restored the Heroes' five-run cushion with a solo home run over the left field wall. It was his second home run of the series.
The Heroes, who led the regular season with 199 home runs, have four home runs in three games of this series.
In the last-gasp rally, the Twins put two men on with no outs in the bottom of the eighth, but only eked out a run on a two-out single by Lee Jin-young.
Nexen starter Oh Jae-young was credited with the win thanks to six solid innings. The left-hander allowed only an earned run on three hits and two walks for his second career postseason victory. During the regular season, Oh had gone 1-0 with a 1.83 ERA against the Twins.
Ineffective Riordan took the loss in his second postseason start. The right-hander held the Heroes to three hits and a run in the first four innings before coming apart in the fifth. For the night, he was tagged for five earned runs on seven hits, including Kang's home run, in four innings.
Closer Son Seung-lak got the final four outs.
Nexen relievers Han Hyun-hee and Cho Sang-woo, who issued four walks without recording an out in Game 2 on Tuesday, held the Twins to a run in 1 2/3 innings and struck out four before handing things over to Son.
Park Yong-taik and Lee Byung-kyu, the Twins' No. 3 and No. 4 hitters, were 0-for-7 with a walk and two strikeouts.
Right-hander Henry Sosa will start Game 4 for the Heroes on three days' rest. He had a no-decision in the Heroes' 6-3 victory in Game 1 on Monday, throwing 84 pitches over 4 1/3 innings while giving up three earned runs on six hits and five walks.
The Heroes started Sosa in Game 1 in favor of 20-game winner Andy Van Hekken because of his ability to recover quickly from starts and pitch on short rest.
The Twins will counter with right-hander Ryu Jae-kuk, who will be making his third start of this postseason.
He made two appearances in the previous round against the NC Dinos and was the winning pitcher in the decisive Game 4.
Sosa made one regular season start against the Twins and got a no-decision, giving up one run in six innings.
Ryu faced the Heroes three times in the regular season, and had a 1-0 record with a 4.00 ERA with 19 strikeouts in 18 innings.
jeeho@yna.co.kr
(END)
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