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| Son Ho-young / Photo=DB |
[Sports Today reporter Shin Seo-young] The Lotte Giants leaned on two homers to top the LG Twins.
Lotte beat LG 5-3 on March 14 at Busan’s Sajik Baseball Stadium in a 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League exhibition game.
The win moved Lotte to 2-0-1 in exhibition play. LG dropped to 1-1-1.
Lotte starter Rodriguez worked five innings, allowing six hits, one walk and three runs (two earned) while striking out three. Reliever Park Jun-woo followed with a scoreless inning, giving up one hit and recording a strikeout to pick up the victory.
Offensively, Han Tae-yang drilled a two-run homer to tie the game, and Son Ho-young delivered the go-ahead solo shot to put Lotte in front.
LG starter Im Chan-kyu lasted five innings, surrendering five hits (one a home run), striking out two and allowing three runs. Reliever Jang Hyun-sik took the loss after giving up a solo homer in one inning.
LG struck first in the top of the second. Leadoff hitter Austin ripped a double to left. Moon Seong-ju followed with a flyout to left, but Oh Ji-hwan reached on a throwing error by the pitcher, leaving runners at the corners with one out. Gu Bon-hyeok then delivered an RBI single to bring home the runner from third and give LG a 1-0 lead. With two outs and runners on first and second, Lee Joo-heon added an RBI single to make it 2-0.
LG pushed the lead to 3-0 in the third. With two outs and nobody on, Austin launched a triple to right. Moon Seong-ju reached on an infield single and Austin scored to extend the lead.
Lotte answered in the bottom of the third. After one out, Kim Min-seong doubled into center, and Jang Du-seong followed with an RBI single to cut the deficit to 3-1. Hwang Seong-bin struck out, but Han Tae-yang crushed Im Chan-kyu’s sixth pitch, a 126 km/h changeup (about 78.3 mph), over the left-field fence — a 130-meter (approximately 427-foot) two-run homer that tied the game.
Lotte took the lead with a long ball in the sixth. After Yoon Dong-hee grounded out to short, Son Ho-young jumped on Jang Hyun-sik’s first pitch — a 141 km/h forkball (about 87.6 mph) — and deposited it over the left-field wall for a go-ahead solo shot.
Lotte pushed the advantage in the eighth. Leadoff man Park Jae-yeop drew a four-pitch walk from new pitcher Woo Gang-hoon. Son Ho-young popped out to right, but consecutive walks to Kim Han-hol and Lee Ho-jun loaded the bases with one out. Kim Min-seong followed with a sacrifice fly to right, scoring a run and extending Lotte’s lead to 5-3.
In the ninth, Lotte turned to closer Park Jeong-min. He retired Lee Young-bin, Chu Se-hyun and Lee Jae-won in order to seal the win and preserve the lead.
[Sports Today reporter Shin Seo-young sports@stoo.com]
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