USA baseball uses big sixth inning to beat South Korea and reach Olympics gold medal game
.JPG "United States’ Todd Frazier (25) celebrate with teammates after scoring on a hit by Mark Kolozsvary during a semi-final baseball game at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021, in Yokohama, Japan. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)")
The United States is guaranteed to win a medal in baseball at the Tokyo Olympics.
The only question remaining is whether it will be gold or silver.
Team USA used a five-run sixth inning to upend South Korea 7-2 in a semifinal at Yokohama Baseball Stadium on Thursday to advance to the championship game. The United States will face Japan at 6 a.m. Saturday to determine who wins the gold medal and who wins silver. Japan beat the United States 6-5 in extra innings earlier in the tournament.
The United States sent nine hitters to the plate in the decisive sixth inning, recording four hits and a pair of walks against five South Korea pitchers to turn a one-run lead at the start of the frame to a six-run advantage by the time it finished.
Mark Kolozsvary, a former Florida Gators catcher who is a top prospect in the Cincinnati Reds organization, drove in the first run of the frame when his one-out single to left scored Todd Frazier, who led off the inning with a walk before moving to second on a Jamie Westbrook single. A Nick Allen walk loaded the bases and a second run scored on Jack Lopez’s RBI single to left.
Miami native Eddy Alvarez, who is now guaranteed to become the sixth athlete ever to win a medal in both the Summer and Winter Olympics, added to the tally with a hard-hit RBI groundout to the first baseman that scored Kolozsvary. Tyler Austin’s two-run single to center capped scoring.
Alvarez, an infielder in the Miami Marlins organization and a Christopher Columbus High graduate, has at least one hit in four of five games during the Olympics and has been a stalwart defensively at second base.
Right-handed pitcher Joe Ryan held South Korea to one run over 4 1/3 innings before turning the game to the bullpen. Ryan Ryder, Scott McGough, Anthony Gose and Anthony Carter threw the final 4 2/3 innings.
South Korea will face the Dominican Republic for the bronze medal.
This story was originally published August 5, 2021 at 9:17 AM.
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