The LG Twins led the league alone with a thrilling come-from-behind victory after a fierce slugfest. On the other hand, KT’s winning streak ended at ‘4.
The LG Twins came from behind to win 8-7 after a neck-and-neck race against the KT Wiz in the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League home game held at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on the 6th. LG, which had 14 hits, overpowered KT, which had 13 hits.
With the victory, LG avenged its defeat against 메이저사이트 KT the previous day (5th). LG recorded 48 wins, 2 draws and 28 losses. He finished first in the league standings alone. The two teams have four wins and three losses this season. A fierce all-out war reminiscent of autumn baseball, while KT failed to win five consecutive games, marking 34 wins, two draws and 38 losses. Now, LG will leave for Busan on an expedition to play three consecutive games against the Lotte Giants and KT will move to Suwon’s home turf and play three consecutive weekends against the KIA Tigers.
◆ Interview with the starting lineup and pre-game coach of the KT Wiz-LG Twins match on July 6 (17,736 spectators at Jamsil Baseball Stadium)
- LG Twins: Hong Chang-ki (nominated hitter), Moon Sung-joo (right fielder), Kim Hyun-soo (left fielder), Austin (first baseman), Oh Ji-hwan (shortstop), Park Dong-won (catcher), Moon Bo-kyung (third baseman), Park Hae-min (center fielder), and Shin Min-jae (second baseman). Instead of canceling infielder Kim Min-sung, LG called up outfielder Lee Ju-hyung. In response, LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said before the game, “Kim Min-sung seems to have to be out for more than a month due to damage to his left thigh muscles. He’s old, and he’s played a lot this season. Kim Min-sung’s absence will be filled by Son Ho-young and Jung Joo-hyun, he said. Park Dong-won achieved the 139th 1,100-game record in KBO history.
- KT Wiz: Alford (left fielder), Kim Sang-soo (shortstop), Hwang Jae-kyun (third baseman), Park Byung-ho (first baseman), Moon Sang-chul (nominated hitter), Kim Hyun-woo (catcher), Park Kyung-soo (second baseman), Ahn Chi-young (right fielder), Bae Jung-dae (center fielder). Instead of registering pitcher Park Se-jin in the first division entry, KT canceled the pitcher’s exclusive share. Prior to the game, KT manager Lee Kang-chul said, “I’ve used Kim Sang-soo as a leadoff player, but I think I need to consider my physical strength, so I lowered it to the second batting order.” “Kim Min-hyuk was hit by his own ball yesterday, and he was excluded from the starting lineup considering his opponent’s record with Kelly,” he said.
◆ 1st to 3rd innings: ‘Perfect pitching match
LG starter Casey Kelly. The starting pitcher for KT is William Cuevas. He also pitched perfectly as an ace pitcher representing both teams at the beginning of the game. First, Kelly did not allow a single batter to get on base in the first to third innings. At the top of the first inning, he struck out Alford, struck out Kim Sang-soo with a strikeout not out, and out Hwang Jae-kyun with a fly ball to right field, respectively. In the top of the second inning, Park Byung-ho struck out swinging after a nine-ball game and struck out Moon Sang-chul with three pitches. Kang Hyun-woo then finished the second inning with a ground ball to the pitcher. The third inning was also a three-way walkout.
Cuevas also fought back with good pitching. In the bottom of the first inning, he gave up a right-handed hit to leadoff hitter Hong Chang-ki, but he induced Moon Sung-joo to a fly ball to third base and then out Hong Chang-ki as a checker at Kim Hyun-soo’s at-bat. Kim Hyun-soo struck out three pitches and ended the inning. In the second inning, he threw a walk to Park Dong-won after two outs, but handled Moon Bo-kyung with a flyout to center field. The third inning is a three-way exit.
◆ 4th to 6th innings: Kelly shaken first → LG who broke Cuevas straight away → LG Kelly who collapsed again and Pilseungjo → KT bullpen shook
It was KT that shook the opponent’s selection first. In the top of the fourth inning. After one out, Kim Sang-soo got on base with a left-center hit and used his fast foot to reach third base when Hwang Jae-kyun hit a double to the left of the left fielder. Park Byung-ho then hit a timely hit to bring third baseman Kim Sang-soo home.(0-1) Moon Sang-chul continued to make 2-0 with a center fielder sacrifice fly RBI on the first pitch. Cuevas, who had a two-run lead on his back, gave up a right-handed hit to Kim Hyun-soo after one out in the bottom of the fourth inning, but struck out Austin and reduced Oh Ji-hwan with a ground ball to first base, respectively.
The first inflection point came in the fifth inning. Kelly faced another crisis in the top of the fifth inning. It could have collapsed. However, he overcame this moment well and laid the foundation for a counterattack. After one out, Ahn Chi-young and Bae Jung-dae hit back-to-back hits. He led Alford to a grounder to third base and became the first and third bases with two outs. The next batter was Kim Sang-soo, who hit a home run the previous day, and Alford even succeeded in stealing second base to pressure LG. But Kelly laughed. The result was a flyout to right field. the end of the inning.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, LG completely reversed the situation by knocking on Cuevas, who was throwing so well. After leadoff hitter Park Dong-won got on base with an infield hit to shortstop, Moon Bo-kyung picked up a walk. LG made a chance to second and third base with one out with Park Hae-min’s sacrifice bunt. Since then, Shin Min-jae hit a timely hit to the center field and recovered one point. (1-2) The next batter is Hong Chang-ki. Shin Min-jae stole second base and countered KT’s previous base play. In the end, Hong Chang-ki hit a sacrifice hit to center field and turned the game to 2-2 starting point. This wasn’t the end. Moon Sung-joo hit a timely left-handed hit to turn the game around 3-2. Moon Sung-joo also stole second base, and Kim Hyun-soo hit a timely hit to the right to make it 4-2. Austin’s left-center hit continued his opportunity with two outs and runners on first and third base, but Oh Ji-hwan, who has been in a no-hit slump for the past four games, bowed his head as he stepped down with a ground ball to second base.
However, LG’s momentum did not last long. The top of the sixth inning that followed right away. After KT replaced Kelly, he even attacked the must-win group and turned the game upside down. Following leadoff hitter Hwang Jae-kyun’s walk and Park Byung-ho’s left-center hit, pinch hitter Kim Min-hyuk’s sacrifice bunt created a one-out second and third base opportunity. When Kang Hyun-woo subsequently grounded out to second base, Hwang Jae-kyun homered and the score became 4-3. As Park Kyung-soo continued to hit left-handed hits, LG eventually dropped starter Kelly here. And the pitcher on the mound is Park Myung-geun, LG’s most powerful card. Here, KT countered with pinch hitter Jang Sung-woo.
There was tension at Jamsil Stadium for an instant. Jang Sung-woo got on base with a ball that hit his body for the sixth time after a full count match. a golden opportunity to get the bases loaded. KT put more pressure on LG by excluding first baseman Jang Sung-woo and putting pinch runner Cho Yong-ho. The next batter was Bae Jung-dae, who broke the silence in the previous at-bat and hit a hit. In the end, the winner was Bae Jung-dae. In an unfavorable ball count 1-2, Park Myung-geun’s fourth change-up (128km) hit a timely two-run left-center hit to turn the game around 5-4. Park Myung-geun continued to throw a walk to follow-up Alford, facing a full base crisis again. In the end, LG replaced the pitcher here again. “Pilseungjo” Ham Deok-ju’s input. The next batter is “HOT” Kim Sang-soo. After the first strike, Kim Sang-soo hit Ham Deok-ju’s second fastball (140km) to create a right-handed hit. Both the third and second base runners are home. (7-4) In the process, Alford rushed home while batter Kim Sang-soo was caught in a run-down between first and second bases. At this time, Oh Ji-hwan calmly sprayed the ball home and outed Alford. Initially, a safe decision was made, but it was reversed to out after LG applied for a video review. It was an inning in which KT scored five runs in the sixth inning alone, reversing the game to 7-4.
KT lowered the starting pitcher Cuevas in the bottom of the sixth inning and raised Lee Sang-dong. Lee Sang-dong handled Park Dong-won with a fly ball to center field and Moon Bo-kyung with a ground ball to shortstop, respectively, but handed over the mound to Joo Kwon after being hit by Park Hae-min with a left-center double. However, Shin Min-jae was on the verge of first and third base by allowing a deep infield hit to third base, and Hong Chang-ki hit a timely hit to the right and Moon Sung-joo hit a timely hit to the right. The score is 7-6. LG, which chased by one point, and chances for first and third base continued. At that time, coach Lee Kang-chul took the mound himself. It was a replacement. A sovereign steel plate. Park Se-jin, who called up on the day, put in. Park Se-jin overcame the crisis of losing a point by inducing Kim Hyun-soo to a ground ball to shortstop. Park Byung-ho caught Kim Sang-soo’s one-bound throw well with exquisite glove handling.
◆ Episode 7-9: In the end, the winner was LG… Oh Ji-hwan’s 7:7 dramatic equalizer in the 7th inning → Hong Chang-ki’s 8:7 reversal timely hit in the 8th inning
However, the game continued to flow in an unknown direction. KT’s attack in the top of the seventh inning. Still, LG’s pitcher is Ham Deok-ju. After one out, Park Byung-ho had a right-handed hit and Kim Min-hyuk had a left-center hit to face a first and second base chance. Kang Hyunwoo struck out. He gave up a walk to Park Kyung-soo, causing a full base crisis. However, he overcame a big crisis by striking out Cho Yong-ho with a swing after a game that went up to 11 pitches.
And the bottom of the seventh inning that followed right away. In the end, LG turned the game to square one with a big shot. KT put Park Young-hyun, the most reliable player in the bullpen. Leadoff hitter Austin struck out. Oh Ji-hwan entered the batter’s box. Park Young-hyun threw two balls after the first strike. And the fourth ball. Park Young-hyun’s 146.5km high fastball led to a tie solo shot over the right fence. Oh Ji-hwan, who broke away from the terrible silence and scored the decisive second home run of the season with an equalizer.(165.5 kilometers per hour, 115.5 meters per hour, 26.4 degrees per hour)
In the top of the eighth inning, LG put Jung Woo-young in. Jung Woo-young allowed a hit to leadoff hitter Bae Jung-dae, but induced Alford to double play in front of shortstop. Kim Sang-soo’s heavy hit came out, but Hwang Jae-kyun was struck out. The end of the inning. And LG turned the game around in the bottom of the eighth inning. KT pitcher is Kim Min-soo. Leadoff hitter Park Hae-min succeeded in stealing second base during Shin Min-jae’s at-bat after stepping on first base with a right-center hit. Park Hae-min, who went to third base with Shin Min-jae’s sacrifice bunt, scored a come-from-behind goal when Hong Chang-ki hit a timely double to right-center. In the end, LG put up closer Ko Woo-suk in the bottom of the ninth inning and defended the victory by one point with a three-way exit.
After the game, LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said, “It was a tough game overall, but I want to praise our players for their tenacity in winning.” In terms of performance, Oh Ji-hwan’s tie-breaking home run in the seventh inning brought the flow, and Park Hae-min made a good chance in the eighth inning. Recently, Hong Chang-ki, who has the best sense of hitting, was able to win by hitting a decisive final hit. On the pitcher’s side, the starting and winning groups were a little shaken, but Ham Deok-ju, Jung Woo-young and Ko Woo-seok, who came out behind, blocked three innings well in a tough situation, creating a foothold for victory. I think today’s victory will mean a lot. I want to compliment the players once again. Thanks to the enthusiastic support of the fans today, we were able to win a come-from-behind victory. “Thank you,” he said.
◆ Major pitching and hitting records in the KT-LG match on the 6th
LG starter Kelly marked seven hits, one walk, and five runs (5 earned runs) in 5⅔ innings. Park Myung-geun (one hit and two runs in 0 innings), Ham Deok-ju (three hits and no runs in 1⅓ innings), Jung Woo-young (1 inning), and Ko Woo-suk (1 inning) threw one after another. Winning pitcher Jung Woo-young (2 wins and 4 losses). Save Ko Woo-suk (2 wins, 3 losses, 7 saves). Kelly is the 62nd KBO player to pitch 100 innings for five consecutive seasons. In the 14-hit lineup, Hong Chang-ki had three hits, and Moon Sung-joo and Kim Hyun-soo, Park Hae-min and Shin Min-jae played as multi-hits.
On the other hand, KT starter Cuevas scored seven hits, two walks, three strikeouts and four runs (four earned runs) in five innings. Lee Sang-dong (one run in ⅔ innings), Joo Kwon (one run in 0 innings), Park Se-jin (one run in 1 inning), Park Young-hyun (one run in 1 inning), and Kim Min-soo (one run in 1 inning) pitched in turn. The losing pitcher is Kim Min-soo (1 loss). In the 13-hit lineup, Kim Sang-soo, Park Byung-ho, and Bae Jung-dae hit three hits each.