(Toyohashi [Japan] = Yonhap News) Reporter Dae-ho Lee = National team coach Ji-hyun Ryu, who announced the recovery of Korean baseball's international competitiveness by advancing to the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in the spring of 2026, solved the final puzzle of winning 5 consecutive Asian Games.
As the Korean national baseball team reached the top with a 3-1 win over Japan in the finals of the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games held at Toyohashi Citizen Baseball Stadium in Aachi Prefecture, Japan on the 27th, head coach Ryu Ji-hyun successfully completed both of the two most heavy tasks entrusted to Korean baseball this year.
Korean baseball has solidified its position as a leader in Asia by winning five consecutive gold medals in Guangzhou in 2010, Incheon in 2014, Jakarta and Palembang in 2018, Hangzhou in 2022, and this year's Nagoya Games.
Coach Ryu led the performance as head of the Korean national baseball team, which recently began to perform well again in international competitions.
Korean baseball, which was in an endless slump due to a series of poor performances in international competitions, declared a generational change centered on young blood, and Coach Ryu took over the baton.
Coach Ryu signaled a revival by taking Korean baseball to the quarterfinals for the first time in 17 years at the WBC held in March of this year.
Coach Ryu, who took the helm in 2025 and whose contract period extends to the WBC, succeeded in instilling confidence in the national team, which suffered the humiliation of being eliminated in the first round of three consecutive competitions.
And I achieved my goal by taking the baton of the Asian Games, where 'even if I win a gold medal, I will be a traitor if I don't win the gold medal.'
However, Ryu Ji-Hyun's journey to this tournament was not smooth.
In the first game against Taiwan in the group stage, it was a close game until the middle of the game due to the batting lineup not working, but the batting lineup opened after the 7th inning and won 5-0.
They easily won the games against Hong Kong (13-0) and Thailand (18-1), but in the first game of the Super Round against Japan, they were completely shut out by left-arm starter Shin Higuchi, allowing 4 hits and no scores in 7 innings, and lost 0-5.
In the second match of the Super Round against China, they did not show a cool performance, giving up the first point, and thanks to the collapse of the opponent's defense, they won 9-2 and reached the final stage after much hardship.
In the finals on this day, Coach Ryu actively implemented a bunt strategy from the beginning of the game, perhaps considering the rainy weather throughout the game.
However, it did not result in a score, and Korea only scored 3 points with 12 hits and 6 walks, leaving 16 bases unused.
Instead, the mound operation was bold.
After entrusting the mound to Kwak Bin (Doosan Bears) with one out in the 7th inning, Cho Byeong-hyeon (SSG Landers) was responsible for 1 inning and Park Young-hyun (KT Wiz) was responsible for 1⅔ inning, ending the game with 3 pitchers.
Manager Ryu was also seen strongly protesting to the umpire when Ji-chan Kim was caught in the crossbar between third base and home in the top of the 8th inning and was put out.
Coach Ryu, who improved the national team's constitution with the achievement of reaching the WBC quarterfinals and also achieved 5 consecutive Asian Games wins, relaxed his expression and smiled only after Park Young-hyun's strikeout led to the final out count.
