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Wet and wild U.S. defeats S. Korea, advances to gold medal game
SYDNEY, Australia (CNNSI.com) -- Doug Mientkiewicz homered in the bottom of the ninth to lift the United States to a dramatic 3-2 win against South Korea in the Olympic baseball semifinal early Wednesday. Mientkiewicz's homer propelled the Americans into the gold medal game for the first time where they will take on Cuba. South Korea will play Japan for the bronze. The victory by the United States was its third dramatic finish of the tournament on a cool, rainy night. After a long night of dispute, downpour and delay, Mientkiewicz hit a one-out homer in the bottom of the ninth inning, then raised his arms in triumph as his drive to right sliced through the swirling drizzle and finally touched down on the soaked grass just beyond the wall. "I hit it, I blew on it, I sneezed on it, I did everything I could because I wanted to go home and get out of these wet clothes," Mientkiewicz said. There was plenty of controversy as well. The Americans' tying run in the seventh was set up by two umpires' blown calls on the same runner. A thunderstorm halted play for two hours with one out and the United States' Brent Abernathy on third in the bottom of the eighth following a double and a groundout. When the game resumed, Abernathy was called for interference after he flattened the catcher with a forearm in front of the plate as he tried to complete a home-to-first double play. There was one more argument after Gookie Dawkins of the United States was picked off in the bottom of the ninth, but that turned out to the Americans' advantage. Instead of having to try to bunt Dawkins to second, Mientkiewicz got to swing away -- and sent the next pitch over the wall. "I can't describe it at all," said American third baseman Mike Kinkade, slathered with mud on the front and back. "It's unbelievable. That's baseball in a nutshell right there." It was a bookend finish to the Americans' 4-0 victory over South Korea in the qualifying round last Wednesday. Mientkiewicz's two-out, eighth-inning grand slam turned that game. "Your heart goes out to them, having it ripped out twice in a week," Mientkiewicz said. 'We are disappointed, but we'll try our best tomorrow to win a bronze medal," South Korean first baseman Lee Seung-youp said. Mientkiewicz also had a role in the United States' tying rally in the seventh inning Tuesday. Kinkade was tagged at first and third on separate plays and should have been out, but wound up scoring anyway to tie it at 2. As he rn to first on his one-out bunt, Kinkade stepped on the first baseman's glove after he had taken the throw a stride in front of the base, knocking Kinkade off his feet. Out? The South Koreans thought so, but umpire Paul Begg of Australia hesitated a few seconds before halfheartedly calling Kinkade safe, touching off the first of several arguments. "The play at first was a little close," Kinkade said, dodging the question of whether he was out. Mientkiewicz followed with a single through the hole at second, sending Kinkade chugging through the muddy infield toward third. He beat the throw with a headfirst slide, but slightly overslid the base while being tagged. To South Korea's dismay, umpire Humberto Castillo of Venezuela called him safe again. Marcus Jensen's sacrifice fly tied it. It was that kind of a night. Heading into the wild seventh inning, submarine-style pitcher Chong Tae-hyon, the only amateur on South Korea's team, was in position for the win. U.S. pitcher Roy Oswalt kept the South Koreans runless until the third inning, when Park Jin-man, a shortstop for the Hyundai Unicorns, hit an RBI double that smacked off the left-field wall just shy of the top. Lee Byung-kyu, an outfielder for the LG Twins, also doubled for a 2-0 lead. The United States didn't get a hit until the fourth, when Brad
Wilkerson and John Cotton doubled for a run.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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