"We’ll Avenge the 0-5 Humiliation in the Final": Choi Min-seok’s Nine-Strikeout Gem Leads Ryu Ji-hyun’s South Korea to a 9-1 Rout of China; Fateful Rematch with Japan Set

[Financial News] Having shaken off the shock of the loss to Japan, South Korea is back on track for another gold-medal run. The South Korea national baseball team defeated tricky underdog China to reach the long-awaited final, setting up a fateful rematch with archrival Japan.
The South Korea national baseball team, led by manager Ryu Ji-hyun, comfortably defeated China 9-1 in the second game of the baseball Super Round at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, held on the 26th at Toyohashi Municipal Stadium in Aichi Prefecture, Japan.
South Korea entered the Super Round carrying one win from its group-stage game against Taiwan and had suffered a 0-5 loss to Japan the previous day. With this victory, the team finished the Super Round at 2-1 and secured a spot in the final as the second-place team. Japan defeated Taiwan 7-3 at the same time to finish first with a perfect 3-0 record, setting up an all-or-nothing final against South Korea for the gold medal at 6:30 p.m. on the 27th at the same venue.
The leading contributor to South Korea’s trip to the final was undoubtedly starter Choi Min-seok of Doosan. Taking the mound with the burden of the previous day’s pitching collapse, Choi allowed seven hits over seven innings. However, he delivered a dominant performance, recording nine strikeouts while conceding one run and allowing just one baserunner via a walk or hit-by-pitch.
The top of the first inning was somewhat shaky. With two outs and a runner on second, Choi surrendered an RBI single to right field by Ruan Chenchen, then faced a bases-loaded, two-out situation after a collision error by the infield. He put out the fire himself by striking out Li Xiaoyang swinging. From the second inning onward, he regained his trademark composure and completely shut down China’s lineup.
The offense responded as soon as the pitching held firm. South Korea got a fortunate break in the bottom of the first. With runners on second and third and one out, the umpires made a costly missed call by ruling the runner safe on Moon Bo-kyung of LG’s grounder to first, even though Chinese pitcher Wu Anjun, who was covering first base, had reached the bag first. Taking advantage of the confusion, third-base runner KIM Do-young of the Kia Tigers also charged home, giving South Korea a quick 2-1 lead.
With the momentum on its side, South Korea added two more runs in the bottom of the second on Park Jun-soon of Doosan’s infield single and Kim Ji-chan of Samsung’s RBI double to left-center. In the sixth, Kim Ju-won of NC’s RBI single to right and a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch for KIM Do-young made it 6-1. In the seventh, Park Jun-soon’s triple to right, Cho Hyeong-woo of SSG’s RBI single, and consecutive doubles by KIM Do-young and Moon Bo-kyung in the eighth inning sealed the 9-1 victory.
At the plate, leadoff hitter Kim Ju-won went 2-for-5 with two RBIs, while second baseman Park Jun-soon went 3-for-4 with one RBI, playing key roles in driving the offense.
Reliever Kim Youngwoo of LG gave up one run after taking the mound in the top of the ninth, but it had no effect on the outcome. Having completely overcome the aftereffects of the lopsided loss in the Korea-Japan game, Ryu Ji-hyun’s team will now make an all-out push in the final on the 27th to win its fifth consecutive Asian Games title and restore its pride.
[email protected] Jeon Sang-il Reporter