Will he finally solve the 恨 of winning the Korean Series. LG Twins manager Yeom Kyung-yeop, who has only one win left to win the long-awaited Korean Series, smiled broadly and vowed to do well in Game 5.
The LG Twins completely won 15-4 in Game 4 of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO postseason Korean Series (KS, best-of-seven) against KT Wiz at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 11th.
As a result, LG will win the Korean Series for the first time in 29 years since 1994 if it has recorded three wins and one more win in the remaining three games. On the other hand, KT is burdened with winning all three remaining games. The two teams will take a day off on the 12th and move to Jamsil Stadium to play Game 5 of the Korean Series at 6:30 p.m. on the 13th.
Until last year, the previous team won the Korean Series with 3 wins and 1 loss (including a draw) at 94.1% (16 out of 17 times), which was very high. Only once, in 2013, the Doosan Bears led the Samsung Lions with 3 wins and 1 loss, but lost three games and lost the championship trophy.
On this day, LG set the stage for the team's victory as Kim Yun-sik, who started as the fourth starter, pitched well in five ⅔ innings (total 87 pitches) with three hits, one walk, three strikeouts, and one run. He played a very important role, playing better than expected by the head coach. Kim Yoon-sik did not allow a single on-base hit until the third inning. The no-hit march ended with a hit to Moon Sang-chul after one out in the fifth inning, but he blocked KT batters well. It is the first time in about 21 years that an LG pitcher has won the Korean Series as a starter since Ravelo Manzanio, who started Game 2 of the Korean Series on November 4, 2002. In addition, Kim Yun-sik was selected as the Daily Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the fourth round of the day.
The batting lineup exploded in a big way for the first time in a long time. In the batting lineup, which had 17 hits in a long and short period, Kim Hyun-soo was active with two hits in four at-bats (one homer) with three RBIs and one run, Oh Ji-hwan with two hits in three at-bats (one homer) with four RBIs and two runs, respectively.
In particular, LG displayed its big gun instinct properly. He hit a big shot in the right place on an important street. Kim Hyun-soo hit a two-run shot against KT starter Um Sang-baek in the first inning, and Moon Bo-kyung faced Kim Jae-yoon in the sixth inning to draw a two-run arch. Oh Ji-hwan, who previously hit home runs in Game 2 and Game 3 of the Korean Series, then hit a three-run shot against KT's Joo Kwon in the 7th inning. Oh Ji-hwan tied the record for most consecutive home runs (three games) in a single season. On top of that, Shin Min-jae stole the bases in the second inning and Choi Seung-min in the seventh inning, respectively.
Kim Hyun-soo set a new post-season record of the most RBIs (45 RBIs) (formerly SSG's best 43 RBIs). LG set a new post-season record for most consecutive hits (eight hits) and a new record for most hits (eight hits) in an inning in the top of the seventh inning.
Coach Yeom Kyung-yeop said in an official press conference with reporters after the victory, "(Kim) Yoon-sik showed a much better pitch than expected. He played his role well as a starter by mixing fastball and changeup properly, which served as a springboard for victory. In the batting line, (Kim) Hyun-soo hit a two-run shot to bring the overall flow of the game to our side. It created conditions for players to attack boldly. In need of an additional point, Hong Chang-ki raised an additional RBI. In addition, with the home runs of Moon Bo-kyung and Oh Ji-hwan, it was easy to solve the game overall, he said.
Coach Yeom Kyung-yeop said, "We won three games. Asked if he could see a victory, he laughed, saying, "I'm desperate," and added, "Not only me, but our players, the front desk and fans are all desperate." Every game seems to work out well with that much-needed strength. Luck seems to follow, and I think the energy is strong. But baseball doesn't know what will happen until the end. I will prepare well and do my best to win the fifth game."
LG entered the Korean Series preparation mode after finishing the regular season first early. After the regular season schedule, they gathered at LG Champions Park in Icheon, Gyeonggi Province and started training camp. At the same time, Casey Kelly was nominated early as the first starter, and Choi Won-tae and Lim Chan-kyu were prepared as starting pitchers in the second and third games, respectively. However, the fourth starter was always a concern. After weighing Kim Yun-sik and Lee Jung-yong, he eventually selected Kim Yun-sik as the fourth starter. Instead, Lee Jung-yong is playing well in all weathers whenever it is important regardless of the inning. As a result, manager Yeom Kyung-yeop's choice is correct.
"I think I made a good choice," manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said of Kim Yoon-sik and Lee Jung-yong. The result came out well. He has used Lee Jung-yong as well as he thought he would be a bullpen. Kim Yun-sik had to throw long as a starter in a really important situation. If (the bullpen) had overstepped by today, it could have continued to be overstepped in the rest of the game. It was that kind of timing, but (Kim) Yoon-sik threw a good pitch while dragging the inning for a long time. In addition, overall, the batters showed their aggressive offense. At the same time, I think the fact that I was able to rest the middle bullpen will also be a positive factor in the rest of the game, he said.
Now, LG wants to confirm its victory in Game 5 of the Korean Series on the 13th. Ace Casey Kelly takes the lead. Coach Yeom Kyung-yeop said, "Kelly is the starter for Game 5." Kelly started in Game 1 of the Korean Series on the 7th and showed good pitching content with four hits, two walks, six strikeouts and two runs (one earned) in six ⅓ innings (a total of 92 pitches). Choi Won-tae started Game 2 of the Korean Series on the 8th and was sluggish with two hits, two walks and four runs in ⅓ innings.
If LG loses Game 5 of the Korean Series, the game will be over to Game 6. Coach Yeom Kyung-yeop initially expressed his intention to put Choi Won-tae as a starter for Game 6. However, the head coach is expected to change his mind. Choi Won-tae took the mound as relief pitcher in Game 4 of the Korean Series on the 11th, but he showed poor pitching. He pitched in relief in the bottom of the ninth inning with his team leading 15-3, but allowed Cho Yong-ho and his follow-up Song Min-seop to walk consecutively. Just like the previous second game, the ball control doesn't listen. Shin Bon-ki grounded out to shortstop, but allowed a sacrifice fly RBI to left field against Lee Ho-yeon. In the end, he finished with two walks and one strikeout and one run in one inning without additional runs.
Coach Yeom Kyung-yeop said of Choi Won-tae, "I made him throw it to check to use it in Game 6 of the Korean Series, but I think it will be too much to use with the current content. I put him on the mound to see how much, but he doesn't seem to have found his balance yet, so it's burdensome to use. I think we need to think enough about who will be the starter for Game 6," he said.
Manager Yeom Kyung-yeop said about the part where he had a lot of home runs, "There is baseball that I wanted to play. In the case of the regular season, I wanted to play "running baseball" at home and "home run baseball" at small stadiums. It didn't come out well in the regular season, but (homer) is coming out well in the Korean Series. It's becoming a home run team. With home runs in the Korean Series, we were able to win a lot. Home runs have the effect of raising the overall team atmosphere as well as the flow of the game. With many home runs, it seems to be becoming a series with confidence and strength," he said, calling for him to show his big gun instinct in the next game.