'Finally, a historic first!' Kwak Bin, 8 years after his debut, writes a Bears franchise record, fending off KIA's fierce 9th-inning comeback for a '1-run' nerve-wracking victory, 'KIA's 5-game winning streak thwarted—Doosan secures 3-game winning streak' [Jamsil On-site Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Doosan Bears halted KIA Tigers' 5-game winning streak and secured a 3-game winning streak.

Doosan defeated KIA 3-2 in an away regular-season game of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League held at Seoul Jamsil Baseball Stadium on the 26th.

With this victory, Doosan, which had won the last two of three midweek games against Hanwha Eagles, succeeded in a 3-game winning streak. They maintained 5th place in the league with 37 wins, 2 draws, and 37 losses.

In contrast, KIA, which had surged with a 4-game winning streak by sweeping all three midweek games against Kiwoom, ended their winning streak at '4'. They held onto 4th place with 41 wins, 1 draw, and 34 losses.

KIA's starting lineup for the day was Park Jae-hyun (left field), Kim Ho-ryeong (center field), Kim Do-young (third base), Na Sung-beom (designated hitter), Castro (first base), Kim Sun-bin (second base), Han Jun-su (catcher), Park Min (shortstop), and Park Jung-woo (right field). The starting pitcher was Hwang Dong-ha.

Replacing Kim Gyu-seong, who started at second base the previous day (25th) against Kiwoom at Gocheok, was 'Veteran' Kim Sun-bin. Additionally, Na Sung-beom, who had started at right field, moved to designated hitter, and Park Jung-woo started at right field.

In response, Doosan set their starting lineup as Jung Soobin (center field), Ryu Seung-min (right field), Park Jun-soon (second base), Yang Eui-ji (designated hitter), Kim Min-seok (left field), Oh Myung-jin (first base), Ahn Jae-seok (third base), Yoon Jun-ho (catcher), and Park Chan-ho (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Kwak Bin. Yang Eui-ji, who had been replaced the previous day due to a headshot impact, immediately displayed fighting spirit by being included in the starting lineup.

Doosan took the lead in the bottom of the 1st inning, gaining early control. After one out, Ryu Seung-min reached base following a full-count battle lasting up to 9 pitches, drawing a walk. Ryu then stole second base. Subsequent batter Park Jun-soon struck out swinging. However, Yang Eui-ji reached base on a hit-by-pitch, and Kim Min-seok then hit a two-run single that dropped just inside the right-field line after a full-count battle lasting up to 10 pitches.

While Kwak Bin continued his strong pitching on the mound, Doosan added one run each in the 5th and 6th innings to extend their lead to 3-0. In the 5th, after two outs, Ryu Seung-min reached base on a walk and advanced to second base when subsequent batter Park Jun-soon came to the plate. Park Jun-soon then hit a two-run single to left-center field, bringing Ryu Seung-min home from second.

That was not the end. In the bottom of the 6th, KIA replaced starting pitcher Hwang Dong-ha with Jeon Sang-hyun. Leadoff batter Kim Min-seok reached base on a walk, and then advanced to second base on Park Ji-hoon's sacrifice bunt. Ahn Jae-seok then hit a two-run single to left field, making the score 3-0.

However, as the saying goes, a game is not over until it is over. In the top of the 9th, Doosan brought in Kim Taek-yeon and replaced him with closer Lee Young-ha. However, after one out, they allowed consecutive walks to Castro and Kim Sun-bin, causing them to waver. Subsequent batter Han Jun-su was out on a third-base infield fly. Next, pinch hitter Kim Tae-gun reached base on a hit-by-pitch, loading the bases. Park Jung-woo then hit a two-run single to left field, cutting the deficit to 3-2. However, the following batter, Park Jae-hyun, was retired on a fly ball to left field, ultimately ending the game with a 1-run victory for Doosan.

Doosan starter Kwak Bin pitched 6 innings (95 pitches total), allowing 4 hits, 1 walk, and recording 5 strikeouts without allowing a run, achieving his 6th win (3 losses) of the season. In particular, Kwak Bin recorded his 100th strikeout of the season on this day.

Thus, Kwak Bin, who debuted in the professional league in 2018, has reached the 100th-strikeout mark for five consecutive seasons since the 2022 season. This is the 23rd such record in KBO history. It is also the first time a Bears franchise player has achieved this. Previously, Jang Won-jun achieved 10 consecutive seasons (Lotte 2006–2011, 2014 + Doosan 2015–2017) and Rios achieved 6 consecutive seasons (KIA 2002–2004 + Doosan 2005–2007) with 100 strikeouts, but those records were achieved while playing for two different teams. Kwak Bin has now made his mark on the Bears' history book just 8 years after his debut.

Additionally, Kwak Bin became the 6th player in Bears history (after 95 Kim Sang-jin (OB), 02 Les, 04 Park Myung-hwan, 16 Bowden, 21 Miranda) to reach 100 strikeouts, and the 3rd Korean pitcher to do so.

Following Kwak Bin, Kim Jung-woo (1 inning), Kim Taek-yeon (1 inning), and Lee Young-ha (1 inning) each pitched scoreless innings in order. In the Doosan lineup, which recorded a total of 7 hits, Park Jun-soon and Ahn Jae-seok recorded multi-hit games.

In contrast, KIA starter Hwang Dong-ha allowed 4 hits, 2 walks, 1 hit-by-pitch, and 2 strikeouts over 5 innings (96 pitches total), allowing 2 earned runs, taking his 2nd loss of the season (6 wins). Following him, Jeon Sang-hyun (1 run allowed), Kim Beom-su, and Han Jae-seung took the mound in order, each pitching one inning. The KIA lineup managed only scattered 5 hits.

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*This content was translated by AI.