"I almost didn't use him because of his thigh." How catcher Ahn Hyun-min ended up in the lineup... The will to overturn the game that manager Lee Kang-cheol couldn't stop [Suwon Field]

*This content was translated by AI.

Ahn Hyun-min (23, KT Wiz)'s will to overturn the game was beyond imagination. Despite manager Lee Kang-cheol (60)'s concerns about his hamstring, Ahn was sincere about wearing the catcher's mask.

Manager Lee Kang-cheol stated on the 21st, ahead of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular-season away game between KT Wiz and the visiting team at Suwon KT Wiz Park, "I asked Ahn Hyun-min if he could play catcher. I thought he shouldn't sit down because of his thigh, but Hyun-min said, 'Sitting is fine.' When I asked again, 'Are you sure?' he said he was really okay. So we had no choice but to use a pinch hitter."

The previous day (20th), KT overturned a 4-9 deficit in the bottom of the 9th inning with six runs. The rally began with leadoff batter Sam Hilliard's solo home run over the fence. Hilliard targeted the first pitch from KIA closer Sung Young-tak and cleared the wall, and Kim Min-hyeok extended the momentum with a two-base hit to right field after a 12-pitch battle.

Ryu Hyun-in drew a walk, and Oh Yun-seok hit a single to left field. Although it was initially thought that KIA left fielder Park Jae-hyun had caught Oh Yun-seok's hit, video review revealed it was a one-bounce ball, resulting in a bases-loaded situation with no outs.

At this point, manager Lee Kang-cheol faced a dilemma. With the score still 5-9 and a difficult comeback ahead, it was Jo Dae-hyun's at-bat, whose batting average was.200. Normally, a pinch hitter would have been used, but with Han Seung-taek and catcher Lee Jung-hoon unavailable, substituting Jo Dae-hyun would have left the team without a catcher for extra innings.

The manager shared his thoughts: "I even considered just giving up one out. I thought about trying a bunt to avoid a double play. But with Choi Won-jun out, it would have been meaningless with two outs."

He continued, laughing, "(Lee) Jung-hoon isn't there, and (Kim) Hyun-soo isn't either, so when Hyun-min said he could catch, we used a pinch hitter for Jo Dae-hyun's at-bat. But this morning I read an article saying Hyun-min didn't do it to win, but because he wanted to try catching."

Regardless, such a substitution would have been impossible without trust in his teammates. This year, KT is one of the teams with the most comeback wins in the league, having 19 such victories. They recently overturned a game against Suwon NC Dinos in the same manner, and the manager trusted that capability.

The manager smiled, saying, "Actually, when we moved to the top of the lineup, I thought we could end it there. With (Heo) Kyung-min, (Ahn) Hyun-min, and Hilliard, I thought one of the three could finish it. The opposing team likely anticipated that and loaded the first base. I read another article today saying Kim Min-hyeok and Ryu Hyun-in also tried hard to survive somehow. Even with a five-run deficit, they didn't give up, and I am truly grateful to the players."

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*This content was translated by AI.