'Top 7 in Wins for First Half' All Fail to Win → 'Season 10th Win' Could Be Latest in History... Depends on Lim Chan-kyu and Choi Min-seok

*This content was translated by AI.

Reaching double-digit wins in a single season is a goal that every starting pitcher would 'basically or desperately' hope for. There is also always interest in who reaches 10 wins first each season.

Securing the 'first to 10 wins of the season' is also a shortcut to winning the wins title. Since the 144th-game schedule per team was introduced in 2015, there have been eight seasons through last year where the pitcher who reached 10 wins first (including co-leaders) finished first overall. That represents a probability of 72.7%.

In this season's race for wins, Lim Chan-kyu (LG), Oliver (KIA), and Choi Min-seok (Doosan) were tied for first place with nine wins each through the first half. It was intriguing to see which of them would add a win in their first appearance of the second half to reach 10 wins first.

However, coincidentally, none of these three pitchers managed to add a win. Oliver suffered consecutive losses in games against SSG on the 16th and Hanwha on the 22nd. Lim Chan-kyu also became the losing pitcher in a game against KT on the 18th. Choi Min-seok pitched six scoreless innings in a game against NC on the 17th and left with a 2-0 lead, but the team allowed an equalizer in the bottom of the ninth inning, resulting in no decision.

Moreover, pitchers who were tied for fourth place with eight wins also struggled or lacked favorable luck. Tolhurst (LG) and Kwak Bin (Doosan), who appeared on the 16th, suffered losses, while Gu Chang-mo (NC) on the 18th and Ryu Hyun-jin (Hanwha) on the 19th recorded no decisions.

In the end, all seven pitchers in the top of the wins category with eight or more wins through the first half failed to add a win in their second-half appearances. On the other hand, Yang Chang-seop (Samsung) and Alcantara (Kiwoom) each added one win to join the group tied for fourth place with eight wins for the season.

Furthermore, if Choi Min-seok and Lim Chan-kyu fail to secure a win by the 25th, it will mark the latest date in KBO League's 45-year history for a pitcher to reach 10 wins. Until now, the latest record was July 25, when Les (then with Doosan) and Bae Young-soo (then with Samsung) reached 10 wins. Both finished that year tied for first place in wins with 17 victories each.

Although there have been differences in opening day and the number of team games each year, this season has seen an unusual delay in reaching 10 wins. Even in 2020, when the regular season started on May 5 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Alcantara (then with Doosan) reached 10 wins first on July 21.

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*This content was translated by AI.