The professional baseball teams KT Wiz and Lotte Giants could not determine a winner after 11 innings of extra innings.
KT and Lotte ended in a 4-4 tie after a long battle in the third match of the '2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League' regular season held at Sajik Stadium in Busan on the 30th.
KT's starting lineup included Rojas (right fielder), Kang Baek-ho (catcher), Heo Kyung-min (third baseman), Kim Min-hyuk (left fielder), Kim Sang-soo (shortstop), Moon Sang-cheol (designated hitter), and Hwang Jae-kyun (first baseman). The starting pitcher was Koh Young Technology.
Lotte's starting lineup included Jeon Jun-woo (designated hitter), Son Ho-young (third baseman), Na Seung-yeop (first baseman), RAY (left fielder), Yoon Dong-hee (right fielder), Kim Min-sung (second baseman), Jeong Bo-geun (catcher), Lee Ho-jun (shortstop), and Jang Du-seong (center fielder). The starting pitcher was Tucker Davidson.
Davidson of Lotte recorded a perfect game by retiring 11 batters in a row until the two outs in the fourth inning. KT had a chance with runners on first and second after back-to-back hits by Heo Kyung-min and Kim Min-hyuk with two outs in the fourth inning. However, they failed to score.
Instead, Lotte took the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning. The leadoff hitter, Na Seung-yeop, hit a solo home run against Koh Young Technology. This marked their second consecutive day hitting a home run, following the team's first home run the day before. He targeted a 115 km curveball on the third pitch of a 1 ball, 1 strike count.
In the top of the fifth inning, KT again had a chance with runners on first and second base after Moon Sang-cheol's single and Hwang Jae-kyun's walk. Oh Yun-seok executed a successful sacrifice bunt, putting runners on second and third with one out. However, KT was once again stymied by Davidson. Bae Jeong-dae and Rojas struck out back-to-back, failing to score.
Lotte extended their lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. The leadoff hitter, Jang Du-seong, had a single to left field, and Jeon Jun-woo hit a ground ball that made it an infield single, creating a chance with runners on first and second. After Son Ho-young failed a sacrifice bunt and struck out, Na Seung-yeop walked, leading to a bases-loaded situation with one out. RAY then hit a sacrifice fly to left field, bringing the score to 2-0.
However, Lotte could not extend their lead. Ultimately, KT broke through. In the top of the seventh inning, the leadoff hitter, Kim Sang-soo, reached base on a walk. Moon Sang-cheol struck out, but Hwang Jae-kyun's single to right field allowed KT to have runners on first and second with one out, chasing Lotte's starter, Davidson, from the game.
With one out and runners on first and second, Oh Yun-seok, who entered the game, hit a two-RBI double to right center off the new pitcher, Park Jin, making it a 2-2 tie. Subsequently, Bae Jeong-dae hit a ground ball to third, but an error on the throw to first by Lotte's third baseman, Son Ho-young, allowed KT to continue with runners on first and third with one out. Ultimately, Rojas capitalized on the opportunity presented by the error, scoring a run with a sacrifice fly to center field, quickly turning the game around to 3-2.
Koh Young Technology had a crisis but minimized damage and earned the qualification as the winning pitcher. He recorded 6 innings, allowing 7 hits (1 home run), 2 walks, and 6 strikeouts, while giving up 2 runs. After Koh, Kim Min-soo and Won Sang-hyun stifled Lotte through the eighth inning.
However, Park Young-hyun collapsed. In the bottom of the ninth inning, the leadoff hitter, Kim Min-sung, reached base on a walk, and Jeong Bo-geun's sacrifice bunt created a chance with one out and a runner on second. Then, Jeong Hoon entered as a pinch hitter and hit a timely double to left center, making it a 3-3 tie. Following that, Jang Du-seong struck out, and with two outs and a runner on second, Jeon Jun-woo managed to get a walk. At that moment, a wild pitch occurred, but the runner on second, Han Tae-yang, attempted to score and was thrown out as the inning ended. The decision by third base coach Koh Young-min was deemed reckless.
The game progressed into extra innings. In the top of the tenth inning, KT seized a chance with leadoff batter Jang Seong-woo's single up the middle and Heo Kyung-min's walk, putting runners on first and second with no outs. A sacrifice bunt executed by pinch hitter Ahn Chi-young created an opportunity with one out and runners on second and third. Kim Sang-soo reached base on an automatic intentional walk, extending the situation to a bases-loaded chance with one out. However, Moon Sang-cheol and Hwang Jae-kyun struck out consecutively, failing to score. Lotte's closer Kim Won-jung created a crisis but managed to escape.
However, in the top of the eleventh inning, KT capitalized on their opportunity. Leadoff batter Oh Yun-seok reached base due to an opponent's error. Lotte's shortstop, Jeon Min-jae, misplayed a routine ground ball. With a sacrifice bunt by Bae Jeong-dae and consecutive walks from Rojas and Cheon Seong-ho, KT found themselves with a bases-loaded situation with one out. Then, Heo Kyung-min hit a sacrifice fly to left field, taking a 4-3 lead. KT brought in Woo Gyu-min as their closer for the bottom of the eleventh inning. However, Lotte allowed a walk to leadoff batter Yoon Dong-hee, and with a sacrifice bunt by Jeon Min-jae and a ground ball to first by Yoo Gang-nam, it set up two outs with a runner on third, where Han Tae-yang hit an infield single to third base, tying the game again at 4-4. However, there were no further hits.
Lotte's starting pitcher Davidson threw 112 pitches, achieving a solid performance with 6⅓ innings, allowing 4 hits, 2 walks, 5 strikeouts, and 2 earned runs. Na Seung-yeop hit home runs on consecutive days, fine-tuning his batting skills. However, all the runs conceded came from errors, leaving a lingering sense of disappointment.
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