Roger Bernadina ignites offense in Tigers win

The pitching of the Kia Tigers kept the offense of the Doosan Bears in check in game four of the Korean Series. Thanks to a great outing of starting pitcher Im Ki-young, who pitched 5.2 innings, and the bullpen, the Bears could only score one run. The offense of the Tigers was sparked by Roger Bernadina, who drove in two runs as the Kia Tigers beat the Doosan Bears 5-1.

The Kia Tigers set the tone in the first inning when Roger Bernadina tripled home Kim Joo-chan for the opening run. Bernadina scored himself on an infield hit by Choi Hyung-woo.

In the next five innings, nothing much happened though the Tigers had a huge scoring opportunity with a runner on third and only one out in the fifth. But pitcher Yu Hui-kwan retired the final two batters to get out of the inning without any damage and to keep the Bears into the game.

The Tigers dealt the decisive blow in the seventh inning as they scored two runs again. With runners on first and second and one out, Kim Joo-chan hit to the shorstop, who committed an error and allowed Ko Chang-Hyuk to score the third run for the Tigers. Roger Bernadina followed with a single to left field and drove in Kim Sun-bin for the fourth run.

The Tigers scored an insurance run in the ninth after the Doosan Bears had gotten on the board in the bottom of the eighth inning. With runners on first and second, Nick Evans drove in the sole run for the Bears with a single to left center field.

Roger Bernadina was the best hitter for the Kia Tigers as he went 3 for 5 with two RBI and a run scored.  Im Ki-young earned the win as he pitched 5.2 shutout innings in which he gave up six hits and fanned six.

Thanks to today’s win, the Tigers are a win away from clinching their eleventh championship.