The Dominican Republic defeated Korea, 10-6, to earn a historic bronze medal at the end of a 27-hit, 4-home run slug fest.
FULL GAME REPORT BOX SCORE
Tokyo 2020 is going to be remembered as a historic edition of the Olympics for the Dominican Republic. The country had celebrated seven medals so far since participating for the first time in 1984. In the ongoing Games, they have earned five, including bronze, the first-ever team-sport medal, in their national sport.
"Now youngsters in the Dominican Republic know that they can compete for their country and win a medal in the Olympics also in baseball," commented manager Hector Borg. "I'm so happy for the players, they worked hard, and they deserve it. We have faced difficult games from day 1 of the Qualifier in Florida. We have played one game at a time, never thinking about the previous day. Personally, going back home with a bronze medal makes me proud. I know in La Romana, my home town, they are organizing a celebration. This is the way we are as people. Dominicans love to dance, be happy, celebrate. It will be great."
Christopher Mercedes earned the win, going 3.1 innings as a relief. He had started the game against Israel on 3 August, going 4.1 innings and delivering 75 pitches. Jumbo Diaz earned the save, getting three consecutive outs with runners at second and third in the bottom of the ninth.
"We made history," commented Mercedes. "I'm so proud I can make the people back home smiling. It was a tough game, but we had only one thing in mind, earning a bronze medal. Thank God, we succeeded."
Julio Rodriguez, Juan Francisco and Johan Mieses homered.
"Contributing to the team, that’s what it’s all about. Helping the team win," commented Rodriguez. Actually, [the home run] was not my favourite part of the game. For me, it was that walk [in the eighth inning] after we were able to tie the game and give the at-bat to Juan Francisco. That was my favourite at-bat. The homer was great, it was exciting, but that was my favourite at-bat."
Lead off hitter Emilio Bonifacio went 2-for-4.
"This medal will improve the Dominican Republic's position in the WBSC World Rankings," commented Bonifacio. "Our win shows that there's nothing you can't do if you work hard enough."
Bonifacio added: "Playing without fans is not the same, but those are the limitation due to the pandemic, and it is something we cannot control. It was an unforgettable experience anyway."
Korea used nine pitchers. Starter Min-woo Kim could get only one out. He threw just 17 pitches and allowed two home runs.
"I'm sorry for the people who rooted for us in Korea," said manager Kyung-moon Kim. "We weren't able to meet their expectations. It's not easy to comment a game after you lose, but it's obvious that our main problem was getting to the bullpen as early as the first inning. It is clear to me that we need better starting pitching if we want to compete at the top international level."
Korea's captain Hyun-soo Kim was the only player coming back from the 2008 gold medal team. He went 2-for-4 with a home run,
"I was of the younger players in 2008, and I didn't know much. Here I felt a lot of pressure to win. I'm sorry I couldn't follow the manager's lead and inspire my teammates. I'm sorry for the people who rooted for us. Of course, I'm disappointed. I still think we are a great team. Older players weren't able to handle the pressure well. This may have affected younger players."
On a final note, Kim said: "It's time to go back to the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) season, work hard and try to win."
Baek-ho Kang commented: "Playing in the Olympics was one of my dreams. It was such an honour to be here. I want to thank the manager and my teammates. I guarantee that I will prepare better to come back on the international stage and have more success."
