'Six-run barrage' Kim Ho-ryeong is truly insane! Kia surges with a fierce six-game winning streak → Yang Hyeon-jong reaches 13 consecutive seasons of 100 innings, Kiwoom falls into a five-game losing slump [Gocheok on-site review]

*This content was translated by AI.

Kia Tigers defeated Kiwoom Heroes and surged ahead with a fierce six-game winning streak.

On the 21st, Kia secured a decisive 11-1 victory over Kiwoom in an away game at Gocheok Sky Dome located in Guro-gu, Seoul, as part of the '2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League'.

With this win, Kia extended their winning streak to six consecutive games, dating back to the the 15th match against Doosan in Gwangju, continuing their upward momentum. Meanwhile, Kiwoom fell into a five-game losing slump.

For this game, Kia set its batting order as follows: Park Jae-hyun (left fielder), Ha Joo-seok (shortstop), Kim Do-young (third baseman), Castro (designated hitter), Na Sung-beom (right fielder), Kim Sun-bin (second baseman), Oh Seon-woo (first baseman), Han Jun-soo (catcher), and Kim Ho-ryeong (center fielder). The starting pitcher was the 'ace' Yang Hyeon-jong.

In response, Kiwoom lined up its starting lineup as follows: Seo Geon-chang (second baseman), Choo Jae-hyun (center fielder), Davison (first baseman), Park Chan-hyuk (right fielder), Kim Woong-bin (designated hitter), Kim Keun-hee (catcher), Lee Hyung-jong (left fielder), Kwon Hyeok-bin (shortstop), and Yeo Dong-wook (third baseman). The starting pitcher was right-handed Ha Young-min.

Kia took the lead first. In the top of the 2nd inning, Kim Sun-bin and Oh Seon-woo grounded out consecutively to end the inning with two outs, but Han Jun-soo drew a walk after an eight-pitch battle, creating an opportunity. Next, Kim Ho-ryeong singled to left-center field, loading the bases with two outs. Park Jae-hyun then hit a sacrifice fly to right field, bringing Han Jun-soo home from third base.

In the top of the 6th inning, Kia extended its lead and pulled away. Leadoff batter Na Sung-beom connected on the second pitch (a 133 km/h cutter) from Ha Young-min after one ball, launching a solo home run over the right-field fence with a distance of 110 meters, opening the scoring. This was Na Sung-beom's 24th home run of the season.

Despite the 2-0 deficit, Kia's momentum did not waver. Following an infield single by Kim Sun-bin to shortstop, Oh Seon-woo hit a line drive single to center field, creating a bases-loaded opportunity with no outs. Although Han Jun-soo struck out, Kim Ho-ryeong fouled off four pitches and then hit a sacrifice fly to center field, extending the lead to 3-0.

Kiwoom scored one run in the bottom of the 6th inning to narrow the gap. Leadoff batter Seo Geon-chang drew a walk, and Choo Jae-hyun hit a single to left-center field after a six-pitch battle, creating a bases-loaded opportunity with no outs. Subsequent batter Davison hit a sacrifice fly to right field, cutting the deficit to two runs.

In the top of the 7th inning, Kia sealed the game. Leadoff batter Kim Do-young opened the scoring with a double to left-center field and advanced to third base on Castro's ground ball. Next, Na Sung-beom hit a sacrifice fly to left field, adding another run. Following this, Kim Sun-bin, Oh Seon-woo, and Han Jun-soo drew three consecutive walks, loading the bases with two outs. Stepping into the batter's box, Kim Ho-ryeong connected on two pitches from Park Ji-sung after one strike, launching a 125-meter grand slam over the left-center field fence, instantly completing a five-run inning and turning the score to 8-1. This was Kim Ho-ryeong's 13th home run of the season. In the top of the 9th inning, consecutive sacrifice hits by Kim Ho-ryeong and Park Jae-hyun extended the final score to 11-1.

Most notably, 'ace' Yang Hyeon-jong, who started as the pitcher for Kia, achieved a major milestone, securing his ninth win (six losses) of the season. Before this game, Yang had pitched 95⅔ innings this season, needing only 4⅓ more innings to reach 100 innings in 13 consecutive seasons. By pitching through five innings with one out, Yang Hyeon-jong climbed the pinnacle of '13 consecutive seasons of 100 innings,' a KBO League record previously held by Song Jin-woo (Hanwha, 1994–2006 seasons). On this day, Yang Hyeon-jong delivered a strong performance over 5⅓ innings, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out five batters and surrendering only one earned run, laying the foundation for his team's victory.

Lee Tae-yang, who entered the game next, pitched scoreless relief over 1⅔ innings, effectively holding the line across multiple innings. Kim Tae-hyung, who appeared in the bottom of the 8th inning, also prevented any runs from scoring over two innings. In the batting lineup, Park Jae-hyun delivered a powerful performance with four hits and three RBIs. Additionally, Kim Do-young, along with Kim Sun-bin and Kim Ho-ryeong, all achieved multi-hit games. Particularly, Kim Ho-ryeong, who recorded three hits, celebrated a major victory by hitting his second career bases-loaded home run and setting a personal record with six RBIs in a single game.

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*This content was translated by AI.