South Korea defeated Japan 3-1 in the baseball final at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games to secure its seventh overall title.

South Korea secured its fifth consecutive Asian Games baseball gold medal on Sunday, defeating Japan 3-1 at Toyohashi Municipal Stadium in Aichi Prefecture. The victory marks the seventh overall Asian Games title for South Korea, extending a winning streak that began in 2010. This result served as a response to a 5-0 loss against Japan in the tournament's Super Round two days prior.

Strong pitching and decisive hitting

Doosan Bears right-hander Gwak Been led the Korean pitching effort, allowing one run on four hits and two walks while striking out nine batters over 6 1/3 innings. The game remained tied at 1-1 until the eighth inning, when Kia Tigers infielder Kim Do-yeong drove in the go-ahead run with an infield single. LG Twins infielder Moon Bo-gyeong followed with an RBI single to extend the lead to 3-1. Japan utilized right-hander Shin Higuchi, who had previously shut out Korea, but he was limited to three innings of work on one day of rest. KT Wiz closer Park Young-hyun secured the final outs, including a strikeout of Masato Shibasaki in the ninth inning to end the game.

Tournament context and service exemptions

The gold medal win provides military service exemptions for 16 players on the South Korean roster who had not yet completed their mandatory service. Among those eligible for the benefit are Kim Do-yeong, Moon Hyun-bin, Lee Jae-hyun, So Hyeong-jun, and Kim Young-woo. The tournament, held in Aichi-Nagoya, saw Korea maintain its dominance in the sport despite a challenging path through the Super Round.