WBSC Premier12 | South Korea handed Cuba its second loss with two home runs by Kim Do-yeong, during a disastrous performance by Liván Moinelo

TAIPEI CITY, Taiwan - South Korea secured their third win against Cuba in the history of Premier12 world tournaments, by initiating a six-run rally against starter Liván Moinelo early in the game. They maintained their lead and claimed their first win in Group B of the WBSC Premier12 presented by RAXUS at Tianmu Stadium in Taipei City on Thursday night.

Box score

However, the standout player in the match was Kim Do-yeong, a 21-year-old third baseman who is an All-Star in the KBO league and is expected to be named MVP this season. This was his first appearance in the WBSC Premier12 tournament, and he made a significant impact by hitting his first two home runs for the national team, contributing with five RBIs.

The third baseman playing for the Kia Tigers in the KBO hit a Grand Slam in the second inning off the Cuban starter, left-hander Liván Moinelo. This contributed to a six-run inning that effectively put Cuba at a disadvantage in the game.

Shortly after the game, Kim expressed his satisfaction with his performance to the press, stating, "I'm pleased with how I played." He also acknowledged the challenges posed by the Cuban starter's fastball but was relieved that they were able to overcome it. While recognizing the importance of individual performances, Kim emphasized that the ultimate objective is to achieve victory as a team.

Moinelo had a forgettable inning. The Cuban pitcher, known for securing two of Cuba's four wins in past Premier12 tournaments, struggled in the first inning. Despite starting with a walk, he redeemed himself by striking out Kim and Yoon Dong-hee after a sacrifice hit, showing that South Korea was eager to make an early impact against Cuba.

Cuban southpaw Liván Moinelo had a challenging night and took Cuba's second loss of the tournament. (Photo by WBSC)

But as had happened against the Dominican Republic just 24 hours earlier, after two outs, Korea scored all of its runs in the inning with an attack that included a double by Moon Bo-gyeong and hits by Park Seong-han and Choi Won-jun that brought in the first, a walk and a hit by a pitch to Shin Min-jae for 2-0. Minutes later, Kim's first of two home runs would come, as he fiercely hit a first pitch from Moinelo for his grand slam that suddenly put South Korea up 6-0. It was early, but the hit proved to be decisive.

"Moinelo is not feeling well and he was still working under the effects of the flu," Cuban coach Armando Johnson said at the press conference. "This was possibly the cause of his poor performance in this game."

Nevertheless, when asked if Moinelo would be starting in any of the three remaining Group B games for Cuba, Johnson replied, "Even though Moinelo may not be fully fit, he is ready to contribute in any capacity to support the team. I trust that we can utilize him when needed and in other scenarios if required," he concluded.

On the second night in a row, the Cuban batters found themselves unable to score against the starting pitcher. KBO Doosan Bears' right-hander Been Gwak, who topped the league with 15 wins this season, showcased his pitching arsenal featuring a 94 mph four-seam fastball and a mix of sliders, curves, and changeups to hold Cuba without a run for the initial four innings. Despite this, the Cuban team had chances to capitalize on but failed to convert them into runs.

Following two scoreless innings for the Cuban's batters, Gwak conceded hits to Yoelkis Guibert and Roel Santos in the third inning. However, he managed to overpower Yoán Moncada with a fly ball to deep right-center, bringing the inning to a close.

In the fourth inning, Cuba advanced runners with a walk to Alfredo Despaigne and a single by Ariel Martínez, but Gwak managed to stop the threat by getting Yadir Drake out on a ground ball double play, with only one out.

In the fifth inning, Gwak issued walks to the first two batters before exiting the game due to a blister on his right hand. Despite not being eligible for the win, he managed to strike out five Cuban batters and maintain the score for four innings despite giving up three hits and three walks. Subsequently, right-handed reliever So Hyeong-jun successfully navigated the inning without conceding a run, even though he loaded the bases following a hit by pitch to Moncada amidst Cuba's offensive threat.

The Cuban third baseman had to exit the game. I asked about his well-being, and the Cuban manager said "Moncada had swelling in his right hand from the impact, preventing him from continuing in the match," adding "There is no fracture on his hand and I hope he can recover, particularly after a day of rest on Friday." The Cuban manager also emphasized the importance of Moncada to the team, the coach stressed the need to prioritize his health and safeguard his future in the sport by not rushing his return.

Korea extended its lead in the sixth inning. Right-hander Yusniel Padrón, who replaced Moinelo in the third inning and blanked Korea for three innings, walked Na Seung-yeup to start the sixth and was replaced by Pavel Hernández. But Na's steal of second and Choi Won-jun's single to right with two outs increased the Korean lead to 7-0.

Finally, the Cuban bats broke a nine-inning streak of scoreless innings in the tournament, scoring one in the seventh inning off reliever Lee Young-ha. Cuba loaded the bases with no outs on an infield hit by Yadiel Mujica and two errors by the Korean defense. But, although Lee got two outs, retiring Roberto Baldoquín - who came in for Moncada - and Erisbel Arruebarrena, Despaigne's infield single put Cuba on the scoreboard with Mujica scoring from third.

However, the star of the night, Kim, responded quickly by restoring the seven-run Korean lead in the bottom of the seventh inning with his second homer of the night, this one a solo shot off reliever Pavel Hernandez.

Cuba responded in the bottom of the eighth inning scoring three runs. Against the 19-year-old reliever, Kim Taek-yeon, the right-handed closer for the KBO Bears, Drake started the inning with a single to right field and Yoelkis Guibert followed with a two-run homer to right. This marked Cuba's first extra-base hit in the tournament. Shortly after, Rafael Viñales, who had taken over as catcher in the seventh inning, contributed a solo home run to left field, completing a three-run surge in the inning.

"It's a fact that some of our best hitters are not performing up to expectations," Armando Johnson said. "Tonight our best pitcher couldn't get the job done. But one positive thing I'm glad about is that we were able to react and recover offensively late in the game."

Despite scoring four runs, Cuba's offense was disappointing in the game. The team had several chances, with 12 men reaching base, but they only managed to go 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. Arruebarrena, in particular, has struggled, going 0-for-9 in the tournament with four strikeouts while batting third. In this game, the Matanzas native went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and left the bases loaded in both the 5th and 7th innings. His struggles continued in the 8th inning with another strikeout. To improve their chances against Australia, the Cuban manager must consider making changes to this crucial part of the lineup.

Although South Korea's relief pitching allowed four runs on the night, 21-year-old closer Park Yeong-hyun of the KBO's KT Wiz, who saved 25 games this season with 10 wins, sealed Korea's victory by recording two strikeouts in a dominant ninth inning.

Now, as South Korea (1-1) prepares to play the Asian classic against Japan (1-0) this Friday at the Taipei Dome, Cuba (0-2) will rest to seek a necessary first win against Australia (0-1) on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. (local time), 11:00 a.m., Cuban and Eastern US time.

Similar to the 2023 World Classic, when Cuba began with losses in their first two games, the team will aim to replicate the accomplishment of qualifying to the Super Round. However, to achieve this, they must not only defeat the consistently challenging Australia but also secure wins against formidable opponents like Japan (ranked No. 1 globally) and Chinese Taipei (ranked No. 2 and serving as the tournament's host).

CUBA - SOUTH KOREA - Highlights