Director Yeom Kyung-yup's pick, "Again!" Chun Sung-ho's multi-hit + RBI explosion for two consecutive days, LG-NC 5-5 draw [KBO Exhibition Game Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Will another pick hit by LG Twins manager Yeom Kyung-yeop (58). Chun Sung-ho (29), who was guaranteed an opportunity to bat at the beginning of the season, made an impression by hitting multiple hits for two consecutive days.

LG won a 5-5 draw with the NC Dinos in the 2026 KBO exhibition game held at Masan Baseball Stadium in Yakdeok-dong, Changwon-si, Gyeongsangnam-do on the 13th.

Currently, LG has seven main players, including Park Dong-won (36), Park Hae-min (36), Shin Min-jae (30), Yoo Young-chan (29), Son Joo-young (28), Moon Bo-kyung (26), and Song Seung-ki (24), as 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC). Son Joo-young returned home midway through an elbow injury and is currently rehabilitating in Korea.

Despite the absence of seven players, LG showed a well-organized performance. While starting pitcher Anders Tolhurst pitched well with three hits (one homer) and four strikeouts and one run in four innings, four of the six bullpen pitchers have pitched no runs since then.

The batters also scored five points on six hits, fewer than their opponents, and played efficient baseball. Among them, Chun Sung-ho, who had multi-hit the previous day (12th), hit hard with two hits, two RBIs and one run from five times at bat.

Chun Sung-ho is a player who manager Yeom Kyung-yeop has vowed to give him many chances to bat by fixing him in the first and second batting order of exhibition games with Lee Jae-won. It was Yeom's choice after Shin Min-jae, Koo Bon-hyuk, and Kim Young-woo, which attracted attention in the spring camp. So far, he is performing as expected. In addition, Lee Young-bin drew attention with two hits and one walk in three times at bat, and Lee Joo-heon with one hit in two times at bat (one home run) and one RBI and one walk.

NC, which was defeated the previous day, failed to win due to the poor performance of the lineup. Starting pitcher Shin Min-hyuk pitched well with one hit (one homer) and one walk, 0 strikeouts and one run in four innings, but again, the bullpen collapsed one after another, failing to keep the victory. In the batting lineup, rookie Shin Jae-in, who started from the bench, played the only multi-hit game with two hits and one RBI in two at-bats.

On this day, LG formed a lineup of Lee Jae-won (left fielder), Chun Sung-ho (third baseman), Hong Chang-ki (middle fielder), Austin Dean (first baseman), Moon Sung-joo (right fielder), Oh Ji-hwan (designated hitter), Koo Bon-hyuk (striker), Lee Young-bin (second baseman), and Lee Joo-heon (catcher). The starting pitcher is Anders Tollhurst.

Against this, NC consisted of Choi Jung-won (designated hitter), Oh Jang-han (right wing), Park Min-woo (second baseman), Kim Hwi-jip (striker), Kwon Hee-dong (left wing), Han Jae-hwan (first baseman), Seo Ho-cheol (third baseman), Kim Jung-ho (captor), and Chun Jin-hwan (middle fielder). The starting pitcher is Shin Minhyuk.

The home team NC scored the first goal. In the bottom of the second inning, leadoff hitter Kim Hwi-jip passed Tolhurst's first pitch, which was in the middle, out of the left-center fence. LG also immediately responded with a home run. In the top of the third inning, Lee Joo-heon hit Shin Min-hyuk's body fastball to draw the left-wall arch. Since then, a tight race has continued.

The joys and sorrows of the two teams' starting pitcher bullpen fights were mixed. LG's batting lineup, which went around for the third time in the top of the sixth inning, broke out first. Leadoff hitter Lee Jae-won walked, Chun Sung-ho hit a left-handed hit, and Hong Chang-ki walked against Ha Joon-young to load the bases with no outs.

NC made a decision and succeeded in replacing the mound with Won Jong-hae. As Austin hit a double play, only the third baseman homered. NC replaced the mound once again, but the score gap widened as Kim Jae-yeol gave one more point with a wild pitch.

LG, which replaced key players in large numbers in the bottom of the sixth inning, scored another point. In the top of the seventh inning, Oh Ji-hwan hit a hit, and Lee Young-bin and Lee Joo-heon drew consecutive walks to load the bases with one out. Lee Jae-won struck out, but Chun Sung-ho hit a timely two-run hit to the right, giving LG a 5-1 lead.

NC's counterattack has also begun. Shin Jae-in, who was replaced, hit a right-handed hit in his first at-bat in the bottom of the seventh inning. Pinch-hitter Park Si-won made up for a point by hitting an RBI double in the left field line. In the bottom of the eighth inning, with one out and a runner on first base, pinch runner Heo Yoon stole second base and went to third base due to an opponent's error, and Chun Jae-hwan hit home with a grounder to shortstop.

For LG, the continued mistakes were regrettable. Koo Bon-hyuk failed to catch Yoon Jun-hyuk's ground ball at once, leading to NC's opportunity. Here, Oh Jang-han tied the game 5-5 with a timely RBI double on the right-wing line and Shin Jae-in's timely RBI single to the right-center.

Shin Jae-in's failure to steal bases failed to turn the tables, and there was no score in the ninth inning, and the game between the two teams ended in a draw.

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*This content was translated by AI.