Korea beat Japan 3-2 tonight in what many will term an upset. Carried by clutch defense, and some good base hits up the middle of the diamond, Korea was able to come from behind for a well-deserved win.
With the score 1-2 in Japan's favor, Lee Seung-yeop took Japan closer Ishii Hirotoshi yard with a man on. That proved to be the deciding swing as both teams brought on their MLB pitchers to stifle each other's late inning ambitions. Park Chan-ho closed it out on the mound for Korea, and Otsuka was pitching for the home team during the top of the ninth inning.
It will be interesting to see what the Japanese media says about this one tomorrow. In my eyes, Japan came ready to play, but just kept hitting the ball within reach of the Korean gloves.
Korea played very well, and should be able to make some noise in the states if they play the same way during the second round.
And you just had to love that small band of white and blue camped in the left field bleachers!
