The baseball final at the Hangzhou Asian Games is a rematch between South Korea and Chinese Taipei. Chinese Taipei’s left-handed pitcher Lin Yi-min, 20, who shut out South Korea in the first game of the group stage, will start the final. South Korea can lose once, but not twice in a row. Four consecutive gold medals and the pride of Korean baseball are on the line.

Taiwanese media, including “EToday,” reported on Saturday that left-hander Lin Yumin will start the final game of the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games against South Korea at 7 p.m. (local time) at Baseball and Softball Sports Center No. 1 in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province, China.

Taiwan coach Wu Tzu-hsien said, “Lin Yumin has never pitched in relief, so he should start first. If he doesn’t feel unwell, it’s him,” Wu said, effectively predicting the start.

Lin pitched six innings of one-hit ball, striking out six and walking none in Taiwan’s 4-0 victory over South Korea in the group stage on April 2. He threw 98 pitches and took the mound on four days’ rest.

Lin used a fastball that touched 150 kilometers and a sharp slider to shut down the Korean bats. Kim Hye-sung, Kang Baek-ho, Moon Bo-kyung, Park Sung-sung, and Kim Sung-yoon were all held hitless by Lin’s outside slider. Left fielder Choi Ji-hoon had two hits and right fielder Yoon Dong-hee had two hits, including a double, but the rest of the bats were silenced. His changeup against righties was also effective.

Lin Yumin, a Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the United States, is a prized resource for the team, ranked fourth overall in MLB Pipeline’s Arizona prospect rankings. He started the year at High Single-A and finished it at Double-A, where he went 6-5 with a 3.86 ERA and 140 strikeouts in 24 games (121 1/3 innings).

At 5-foot-10, he doesn’t have an overpowering delivery, but he has a solid mix of pitches, including a slider, curveball, and changeup. As expected, he showed his power against South Korea, and it’s hard for South Korea to face Lin Yumin again in five days.

However, baseball is a sport of adaptation, and hitters have an advantage over pitchers when they meet again. Once the ball is familiarized, batters are better equipped to handle it. You can try a different batting order from the first game. Yoon Dong-hee could be a key player, as she had good reads throughout the tournament, including a two-hitter off Lin Yumin.메이저사이트

After struggling to find their groove early in the tournament, perhaps due to acclimatization, the Korean batting lineup has been on a roll. They scored eight runs in their last game against China on June 6. Kang Baek-ho’s home runs have been the most welcome sight. Noh Shi-hwan, the No. 4 hitter who is 7-for-13 with a five-figure on-base percentage (.538), is also overdue for his first home run.

After clinching a spot in the final with a win over China on Saturday, team manager Liu Zhong-il said, “I think Taiwan’s starting pitcher tomorrow will be the left-hander (Lin Yumin) from the preliminary round. We lost to him once, so we will prepare well and attack him. It was hard to get to the final. I will prepare well so that I don’t get beaten twice, and I will definitely win the gold medal,” he said.

Meanwhile, Korea’s starting pitcher is Moon Dong-ju, who started against Chinese Taipei on the 2nd. He took the loss, but pitched four innings of three-hit ball with one walk, three strikeouts and two runs. Kwak Bin, who has been focusing on his recovery after suffering from gallbladder symptoms in his back, is also preparing for his first start, so his pitching ability is not far behind Taiwan.