Korea Stops Taiwan, 5-2

Korea used strong pitching and timely hitting to get past Taiwan 5-2 on Saturday at the Asian Olympic Qualifier in Taichung, Taiwan. Korea will battle Japan on Sunday in a key battle that will go a long way in determining which squad claims an automatic berth in next year’s Beijing Olympic Games.

Taiwan hit paydirt early when designated hitter Chin-Feng Chen laced a two-out single up the middle off Hanwha Eagles left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu to score Jin-Luong Hu for a 1-0 lead in the opening frame. And, with 14,000 Taiwanese fans cheering and fire-baller En-Yu Lin on the mound things looked bleaked for Korea.

Lin, who registered seven strikeouts over the first three innings, was dominant in five innings on the mound allowing only four hits while fanning 10. However, the 26 year-old right-hander only mistake of the game was costly.

Nursing a slim 1-0 lead, Lin started the fifth by registering his eight strikeout before Jin-Man Park reached on a single. But the Rakuten Eagles star responded with his ninth strikeout victim, Kyung-Oan Park, and appeared to be in control of the game until disaster struck.

A two-out single by Young-Min Ko set the stage for left fielder Jong-Wook Lee who smacked a belt-high “heater” to deep, deep right for a 3-1 lead. Lin proceeded to strikeout Dae-Hyung Lee to end the inning but the damage had already been done.

Taiwan inched closer in the sixth when Kai-Shan Zhang knocked home Zhian-Ming Zhang to make the score 3-2. But it would prove to be “too little, too late” as Korea added a pair of insurance runs – including a solo homer from Jin-Man Park – to claim an important 5-2 win.

A trio of Korean relievers, including former Major Leaguer Chan-Ho Park, silenced Taiwan the final four innings to setup a crucial matchup against Japan on Sunday.

Taiwan will meet a scrappy Philippines squad – the reigning Southeast Asian Games Champs, on Sunday before squaring off against tourney favorite Japan in their finale on Monday.