"Park Young-hyun, a bit much to use in a 12-2 game..." Manager Lee Kang-chul follows the natural order; the strongest closer, fully rested for a week, enters the race for first place [Suwon]

*This content was translated by AI.

KT Wiz ace closer Park Young-hyun (23) will enter the race for first place at 100% condition. Behind this decision was the manager's choice to follow the natural order.

KT announced its starting lineup ahead of its home game against the LG Twins at the Suwon KT Wiz Park on the 28th for the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season.

On this day, KT set its batting order as Kim Min-hyuk (left fielder), Choi Won-jun (right fielder), Kim Hyun-soo (first baseman), Jang Seong-woo (designated hitter), Sam Hilliard (center fielder), Oh Yun-seok (third baseman), Kim Sang-su (second baseman), Han Seung-taek (catcher), and Lee Kang-min (shortstop). The starting pitcher is Matt Sauer.

As of pre-game, KT holds a 17-8 record, sitting in first place in the league, 0.5 games ahead of second-place LG (16-8). With this three-game series, the first-place position could change at any time, leading some to already call it a preview of the Korean Series.

In response, KT manager Lee Kang-chul (60) waved his hands, saying, "It means nothing. I would acknowledge it if we were still in this position after six months," but then added, "It's good that we're doing positive calculations instead of just negative ones regarding win-loss margins at this time of year. There are days like this," and laughed heartily.

This is a fierce early-season showdown between foreign pitchers. KT's Sauer, who overcame early struggles, has gradually found stability by relying on his slider, posting a 3.80 ERA in four April games.

Opponent Wells has been consistent. Starting as a temporary fifth starter, he has recorded two wins and one loss in four games this year with a 1.44 ERA. With his unflagging upward trend, LG manager Yeom Kyung-yeop (58) has even suggested that fixing him in the starting rotation is possible.

Manager Lee Kang-chul praised Wells, saying, "I met Wells once during the WBC and in spring training, and I thought, 'Why use him?' He wasn't that good then, but once the season started, his changeup was excellent. I could see him getting better and better as time went on."

He also spared no praise for Sauer. Manager Lee Kang-chul said, "Sauer's best performance was in the last game (April 22 vs. KIA). He was throwing his slider, his velocity was up, and it seemed like he realized something. He just needs to avoid walks. He has given walks to the first batter in recent games, so I want to watch him a bit more."

Recently, LG has faced the setback of closer Yoo Young-chan (29) being sidelined due to elbow surgery. The LG organization announced the day before (27th) that "Yoo Young-chan received medical opinions from three domestic hospitals stating that he requires pin fixation surgery due to a stress fracture of the right elbow's olecranon. After receiving treatment at Yokohama Minami Kyoai Hospital in Japan, the hospital for surgery will be decided."

In contrast, Park Young-hyun of KT will take the mound at full condition. Park has been active this season with 10 games, one win, no losses, seven saves, and a 1.46 ERA. However, due to a lack of save opportunities, he has not appeared since the April 21 Suwon KIA game, unintentionally.

If he appears today, it will be after a week's rest. Park could have been used in the series where he finished with one win and two losses after the Incheon SSG Landers game last weekend. In the game on the 26th, KT was leading 12-2, and he could have been brought in for a condition check.

Park Young-hyun is a type of player who performs better the more frequently he pitches: in 19 games with a two-day interval last year, he posted a 2.42 ERA; in 12 games with a three-day interval, a 3.38 ERA; and in six games with a four-day interval, a 4.70 ERA.

The manager is well aware of this. Manager Lee Kang-chul said, "I was worried that Park Young-hyun didn't pitch enough in the game on the 26th. However, in a situation where we were leading 12-2 on the last day, it felt a bit much to use him. If the player himself had said, 'I really need to pitch,' I would have reluctantly sent him out, but since he said he was fine, I didn't use him. I wouldn't have wanted to use him either, unless necessary."

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*This content was translated by AI.