Choo, Yoon lead as Korea bounces Venezuela

Mar 22, 2009 - 4:39 AM LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- Shin-Soo Choo hit a three-run homer and Suk-Min Yoon tossed 6 1/3 strong innings to lead Korea to a 10-2 victory over Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic semifinals on Saturday.

Tae Kyun Kim added two hits, two RBI and three runs scored and Hyun-Soo Kim went 3-for-3 for Korea, which will face either Japan or the United States in the WBC Final on Monday.

Venezuela is eliminated from the competition.

Venezuelan manager Luis Sojo made the curious decision prior to the game to start veteran Carlos Silva over Felix Hernandez. The move immediately backfired.

Korea jumped on Silva right from the start, pushing five runs across in the first inning and two more in the second. Known for his command, Silva surrendered a walk to Yong-Kyu Lee leading off the first inning and watched as Bobby Abreu's error in right field put runners on first and second with none out.

Hyun-Soo Kim followed with an RBI single and Tae Kyun Kim re-loaded the bases with a single. Silva got his first out of the frame when Dae Ho Lee grounded back to the pitcher, but a run scored on the play.

Choo was up next and put the Koreans in charge when he lifted an 0-1 fastball over the center field wall to push it to 5-0.

Silva was removed after recording one out in the second and charged with seven runs - six earned - and six hits. He yielded two home runs and did not strike anyone out.

Yoon held the powerful Venezuelan lineup in check, allowing two runs and seven hits in 6 1/3 innings while striking out four and walking one.