Preview of the Korean Series (KS): "It was a bore." Samsung dominates with pitching and hitting, defeating LG 9-2 to take sole first place! Choi Hyung-woo achieves KBO's first-ever 1,800 RBI feat [Daegu On-Site Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

The preview of the first game of the Korean Series (KS) was a bore. Samsung Lions dominated both pitching and hitting against LG Twins to take sole first place.

On the 7th, Samsung defeated LG 9-2 in a regular-season home game at Daegu Samsung Lions Park as part of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League.

With this win, Samsung, which had won five straight games, reached 50 wins with a record of 50 wins, 2 draws, and 31 losses (winning percentage 0.614), becoming the second team in the league to reach 50 wins after LG. This erased the gap with LG (51 wins, 32 losses, winning percentage 0.614) and moved Samsung into first place based on a higher winning percentage.

The turning point came in the bottom of the 5th inning with the score tied at 2-2, two outs, and runners on second and third bases. First, Samsung, trailing 0-2, created scoring opportunities with runners on first and second base after Kim Ji-chan's single to left field and a hit-by-pitch by Kim Hyun-jun in the bottom of the 5th with one out. Gu Ja-wook hit a sacrifice fly to right field for an RBI, and Choi Hyung-woo's hit flew over the left-field line. This was an RBI double that tied the game at 2-2.

Ryu Ji-hyuk hit a ground ball toward first base after making contact with Anders Tolhurst's outside forkball. Tolhurst initially failed to field it, but Shin Min-jae successfully stopped the ball. At that moment, Shin Min-jae attempted a glove toss instead of throwing to catch the runner at home plate.

However, the ball went well over the infielder's head, allowing both runners from second and third base to score. Samsung took a 4-2 lead. After Samsung added two more runs while LG failed to score any further points, Samsung secured the first game of their final three-game series in the first half.

In the ace matchup between foreign pitchers, Samsung came out ahead. Samsung's Ariel Jurado pitched six innings, allowing five hits (one home run), four walks and hit-by-pitches (three walks, one hit-by-pitch), striking out four batters, and giving up two earned runs to improve his record to 5 wins and 1 loss for the season. He also recorded his 13th quality start (six or more innings pitched with three or fewer earned runs). LG's Tolhurst received no help from fielders in either batting or defense, pitching five innings, allowing six hits, four walks and hit-by-pitches (three walks, one hit-by-pitch), striking out three batters, and giving up four earned runs to finish the season with 7 losses and 8 wins.

In terms of offensive firepower, LG could not match Samsung. While LG managed only scattered eight hits, Samsung unleashed a barrage with 15 total hits from both long and short hits. Choi Hyung-woo went 2-for-4 with two RBIs; Lewin Diaz went 2-for-4 with one home run, one walk, two RBIs, and two runs scored; Gu Ja-wook went 3-for-4 with one RBI, one walk, and two runs scored; Kim Ji-chan went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and one stolen base; and Shim Jae-hoon went 2-for-4.

Samsung's lineup for the day was: Kim Ji-chan (center field), Kim Hyun-jun (right field), Gu Ja-wook (left field), Choi Hyung-woo (designated hitter), Lewin Diaz (first baseman), Ryu Ji-hyuk (second baseman), Kang Min-ho (catcher), Kim Young-woong (third baseman), and Shim Jae-hoon (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Jurado.

LG countered with the following lineup: Hong Chang-ki (right field), Park Hae-min (center field), Austin Dean (first baseman), Moon Bo-kyung (third baseman), Moon Jung-bin (designated hitter), Moon Sung-ju (left field), Oh Ji-hwan (shortstop), Park Dong-won (catcher), and Shin Min-jae (second baseman). The starting pitcher was Tolhurst.

The first run belonged to the visiting team, LG. In the top of the 4th inning with one out and a runner on first base, Park Dong-won hit a two-run home run over the left-field wall to make it 2-0. However, that was all the runs LG would score. It was regrettable that they failed to capitalize on every opportunity. No follow-up hits came in the top of the 1st inning with one out and runners on first and second, nor in the top of the 2nd inning with two outs and bases loaded. In the top of the 7th, Hong Chang-ki reached base via a hit-by-pitch, but Park Hae-min hit into a double play to dampen the momentum.

Samsung was the opposite. After scoring four runs in the big inning in the bottom of the 5th, they added two more in the bottom of the 7th. Leading off, Gu Ja-wook singled to left field and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Choi Hyung-woo then hit an RBI single to center-left field to add another run. With this hit, Choi Hyung-woo achieved his first-ever 1,800 career RBIs in KBO history.

Following that, Diaz hit a ground ball to center field, and Kim Young-woong hit an RBI single to center field to seal the game. Thanks to Kim Young-woong's reach, Samsung achieved a lineup of all nine batters reaching base for the first time that day. This marks the 702nd time in Samsung franchise history and the 5th,222nd time in KBO history that all nine starting batters reached base.

Samsung's offense did not stop. In the bottom of the 8th inning, leading off batter Kim Ji-chan singled to left field and stole second base to create a scoring opportunity. Kim Sung-yoon hit an RBI single to left field, and Gu Ja-wook singled to left field again to load the bases with runners on first and third. Although Lee Seong-gyu hit into a double play, Diaz exploded with a two-run home run over the right-field wall to end the game.

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*This content was translated by AI.