'Nightmare of Changwon, 9th Inning Erased': 37-Year-Old Veteran's Obsession with 12-Pitch At-Bat → Byun Woo-hyuk's Debut Walk-off Hit... Manager Impressed: "Strong Will to Break the Losing Streak" [Gwangju Field]

*This content was translated by AI.

KIA Tigers manager Lee Beom-ho applauded the players' unwavering focus until the very end.

On the 4th, KIA secured a 4-3 victory over KT Wiz in a tightly contested game that went into extra innings at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field during their home match of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season.

With this win, fourth-place KIA escaped its two-game losing streak and maintained a 2.5-game lead over third-place LG Twins with a record of 64 wins, 2 ties, and 52 losses. KT's three-game winning streak was snapped; the team sits at 69 wins, 3 ties, and 44 losses, trailing second-place Samsung Lions by just 0.5 games after suffering a loss on the same day.

This was no easy victory. Both starting pitchers, Adam Oller for KIA and Bae Je-seong for KT, delivered strong performances, keeping the score tied at 0-0 through six innings. However, in the top of the seventh inning, KIA fell behind after Kim Sang-soo hit a two-run single.

But from the bottom of the eighth inning onward, KIA players' focus shone brightly. Harold Castro's line drive single to center field and Kim Do-young's walk created scoring opportunities. With one out, 37-year-old Kim Sun-bin faced Sugioto Kyoya in a grueling 12-pitch at-bat, drawing a walk to load the bases.

Following Lee Ho-yeon's bases-loaded walk, Han Jun-soo hit a two-run double that grazed the first base bag with two outs and bases loaded, instantly turning the score to 3-2 in KIA's favor. The manager identified this moment as the turning point of the game. After the match, Manager Lee Beom-ho said, "Kim Sun-bin's persistent at-bat in the eighth inning was outstanding, and Han Jun-soo's timely hit was also excellent."

Although KIA allowed an equalizer again in the top of the ninth inning, they remained composed. In the bottom of the 10th inning, Park Jeong-woo and Jung Hyun-chang drew walks off pitcher Joo Kwon against one out, and Kim Ho-ryung executed a sacrifice bunt to move runners to second and third with one out. With bases loaded due to Han Jun-soo's intentional four-ball walk, Byun Woo-hyuk hit a towering fly ball that reached just in front of the center field fence, scoring an RBI on a sacrifice fly and putting an end to the long game.

Manager Lee said, "It was a tough game, but all players showed strong determination to break the losing streak. They maintained their focus until the end and earned this victory." He added, "We were able to win thanks to Park Jeong-woo's leadoff walk in the 10th inning and the perfect execution of strategy by the following batters."

The pitching staff also played a crucial role. Adam Oller delivered an ace-like performance, throwing 6⅔ innings with only three hits allowed, three walks, ten strikeouts, and two earned runs, including a no-hit effort through 5⅔ innings. Following Oller, Kwak Do-gyu and Jeon Sang-hyun each pitched two-thirds of an inning without allowing any additional runs. In extra innings, Jo Sang-woo shut down the opposition for one full inning, securing his seventh win (with three losses) of the season.

Manager Lee praised the pitchers: "Oller fulfilled the role of an ace by pitching long innings. Kwak Do-gyu and Jeon Sang-hyun held the line without allowing any further runs, and Jo Sang-woo's clean shutdown in extra innings was also significant."

The final scene belonged to Byun Woo-hyuk, who had a special day. A graduate of Ilsan Elementary School, Hyundo Middle School, and Bukil High School, Byun was highly anticipated as a powerful right-handed hitter selected first overall by the Hanwha Eagles in the 2019 KBO Rookie Draft. Although he joined KIA via trade ahead of the 2023 season, he struggled to secure a regular starting position and bounced between the first team and the minor league squad.

But today was different. Inserted as a pinch runner in the top of the 10th inning, Byun delivered his first career walk-off hit in KIA's final at-bat of the game, which was desperately needed to break the losing streak. The Gwangju-Kia Champions Field was packed with 25,000 fans, marking the team's 30th sellout crowd. This tied the club record for most sellouts achieved during their 2024 championship season.

Manager Lee said, "Thank you to all our fans who filled the stadium today again. We will prepare well for tomorrow's game and deliver a strong performance."

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*This content was translated by AI.