Samsung Secures Direct Spot in Playoffs with 77th Win of the Season

Samsung, a professional baseball team, has secured a direct spot in the playoffs by finishing in second place in the regular season. This achievement marks their first ‘fall baseball’ in three years since 2021.

Samsung’s Victory Over Kiwoom

Samsung sensed victory from the first inning, as ‘homegrown ace’ Won Tae-in struck out the batter easily and Ryu Ji-hyeok threw his whole body to get an out. In front of a crowd of 24,000, which was the 28th sellout of the season, Park Byung-ho hit a three-run home run over the left field fence, dealing a fatal blow to his former team, Kiwoom.

Koo Ja-wook warmed up with a solo arch in the third inning, and added two more runs in the bottom of the sixth by hitting a home run over the right-field fence, his fourth career home run in a row. Kiwoom scored six runs including a three-run home run by Kim Geon-hee in the top of the ninth inning to close the gap to one run, but that was it.

Won Tae-in Secures 15th Win

Won Tae-in, who held the game to one run through six innings, secured his 15th win, the most of any pitcher, and secured the title of most wins. “I will do my best to prepare for the playoffs and throw my best in the final game,” Won Tae-in said.

LG and SSG’s Recent Performances

In the Jamsil Rivalry match, LG’s Park Hae-min displayed ‘show time’. While Doosan right fielder Jo Su-haeng missed the ball, he ran all the way home with all his might and created a ground home run. With LG winning, they are now three games behind fourth-place Doosan and need just one more win to secure a spot in the wildcard playoffs.

SSG, with their stamina, defeated KT for two consecutive days, winning six games in a row and reclaiming 5th place for the first time in exactly one month. Kim Gwang-hyun earned his 11th win of the season with a shutout, and rookie Park Ji-hwan led the way with two home runs.