KIA wins again! But there was something else 'winning coach' Lee Beom-ho praised: "Kim Do-young's 3-run home run secured the victory, but..."

*This content was translated by AI.

Lee Beom-ho, the 'winning coach' who led KIA Tigers to a four-game winning streak, shared his thoughts after the victory.

KIA defeated Hanwha 6-3 in an away regular-season game of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League at Daejeon Hanwha Life V Park on the 19th.

With this win, KIA surged to a four-game winning streak, improving their record to 58 wins, 48 losses, and 2 ties. They maintained sole possession of fourth place in the league standings, trailing third-place LG Twins by one game.

In contrast, Hanwha fell into a five-game losing streak, recording 48 wins, 55 losses, and 3 ties. Hanwha retained sixth place alone, widening the gap with fifth-place Doosan Bears to eight games.

KIA's starting pitcher Shirakawa pitched a season-high 6⅓ innings but could not secure the win after the bullpen allowed an equalizer. Nevertheless, Shirakawa delivered a strong performance, allowing only two hits while walking two batters and striking out three, contributing just one earned run to help the team secure victory.

Following Shirakawa, pitchers Kim Beom-soo (⅓ inning), Jeon Sang-hyun (0 innings, 1 earned run), Sung Young-tak (1⅓ innings), Jo Sang-woo (0 innings), and Lee Ui-ri (1 inning) took turns to preserve the win. In KIA's lineup that recorded seven hits, Park Jae-hyun and Kim Do-young both delivered multi-hit performances.

KIA scored one run each in the second and third innings to build a 2-0 lead. In the second inning, with one out and bases loaded, runner Oh Seon-woo scored on a ground ball that dropped between the second baseman and right fielder off Park Jae-hyun's bat. In the third inning, Castro hit his 13th home run of the season as a solo shot.

During this period, Shirakawa pitched a no-hit game through six innings with one out. However, in the bottom of the seventh, Noh Si-hwan launched a two-run homer (his 25th of the season) off Jeon Sang-hyun, tying the score at 2-2.

Ultimately, KIA took control in the top of the ninth with no outs and runners on first and second. After a sacrifice fly to left-center field, Kim Do-young hit a three-run homer with one out and runners on second and third, extending the lead to 6-2. This was Kim Do-young's 37th home run of the season, increasing his gap over second-place Austin Dean (LG Twins, 32 home runs) by five.

In the bottom of the ninth, KIA brought in Jo Sang-woo but failed to record a single out, allowing a bases-loaded situation with no outs and runners on first and third. Lee Ui-ri then entered the mound. He induced Moon Hyun-bin into a groundout to the second baseman for a double play, followed by Kang Baek-ho's fly ball caught by the first baseman, sealing the victory.

After the game, 'winning coach' Lee Beom-ho first acknowledged Kim Do-young as the day's hero but also praised another aspect: fundamentals.

Manager Lee stated, "Although Kim Do-young's three-run home run secured the win, all fielders executed basic plays solidly throughout the game."

He continued, "They handled multiple sacrifice bunt situations well, including watching the ball and executing the play to produce results. I also want to commend the infielders, such as Jeong Hyun-chang, for consistently recording outs in defense," while applauding their efforts.

The manager added, "Shirakawa didn't earn the win, but he pitched his best. The situation was tight, so we made a substitution, but he truly delivered excellent pitching. Sung Young-tak also held strong during a tense battle for 1⅓ innings. Lee Ui-ri once again protected the team's victory in a critical moment today," giving them a thumbs-up.

Finally, Manager Lee said, "The players' strong will to win allowed us to secure this victory. Thank you to all the players for your hard work and to our fans who supported us."

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*This content was translated by AI.