The day after the "championship," Choi Won-jun hit a "third-in-history 200-hit" mark! Crushed Kiwoom 10-1 → Rode a 7-game winning streak [Gochek On-Site Review]

*This content was translated by AI.

KT Wiz, which clinched the regular season championship the previous day (the 5th), defeated the Kiwoom Heroes to ride a 7-game winning streak. This was compounded by Choi Won-jun's historic achievement, bringing double celebration.

On the 6th, in an away game against Kiwoom at Seoul Gochek Sky Dome in the "2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League," KT secured a decisive 10-1 victory, leading with a lineup that unleashed 15 hits of varying lengths.

On this day, KT set its starting LINEUP as Choi Won-jun (right fielder)-Ryu Hyun-in (second baseman)-Hilliard (left fielder)-Jang Sung-woo (designated hitter)-Heo Kyung-min (third baseman)-Oh Yun-seok (first baseman)-Bae Jung-dae (center fielder)-Kang Hyun-woo (catcher)-Jang Jun-won (shortstop). The starting pitcher was foreign right-handed pitcher Daniel Davis.

In response, Kiwoom countered with Chu Jae-hyun (designated hitter)-Davidson (first baseman)-Hiura (left fielder)-Kim Woong-bin (third baseman)-Park Chan-hyuk (right fielder)-Lim Byung-wook (center fielder)-Kim Dong-heon (catcher)-Yeom Seung-won (second baseman)-Choi Jae-young (shortstop). Park Jun-hyun took the mound as the starting pitcher.

KT broke the 0-0 tie first in the top of the 3rd inning. After leading batter Choi Won-jun's double and Ryu Hyun-in's single gave KT a bases-loaded opportunity with runners on first and third, Jang Sung-woo's walk filled the bases following one out. Then, Heo Kyung-min's sacrifice fly to right field scored the first run, followed by Oh Yun-seok's RBI hit to take a 2-0 lead.

Kiwoom immediately counterattacked in the bottom of the 3rd inning. After Chu Jae-hyun reached on a hit-by-pitch with two outs, Davidson's single created runners on first and third, and Hiura hit an RBI single up the middle to narrow the gap to 1-2.

However, KT's firepower immediately erupted. In the top of the 4th inning, with one out, Kang Hyun-woo's walk and Choi Won-jun's single created a runners-on-first-and-second chance, where Ryu Hyun-in smashed a two-RBI double down the left-center gap to pull ahead 4-1. Then, in the top of the 5th inning, from a runner-on-third situation with one out created by Heo Kyung-min's double and Oh Yun-seok's grounder, Bae Jung-dae's sacrifice fly to center field added another run to extend the lead.

The nail in the coffin was driven home in the top of the 6th inning. With runner-on-first-and-second following pinch hitter Ahn Hyun-min's infield hit and a fielder's choice, Ryu Hyun-in hit a double along the right-field line to put runners on second and third. Then Hilliard smashed a two-RBI double, followed by Jang Sung-woo's walk and Heo Kyung-min's one-RBI double. In the continued opportunity, Oh Yun-seok's sacrifice fly and Bae Jung-dae's RBI hit added up to a massive 5-run outburst, widening the score gap to 10-1 and securing the win.

Valuable records also poured out in this game. Choi Won-jun, who had recorded 199 hits prior to the game, added two more hits to instantly reach the milestone of 201 hits for the season.

With this, Choi Won-jun became the third batter in history to achieve 200 hits in a single KBO League season. In league history, 200 hits was a "dream territory" only reached by Seo Geon-chang (then Nexen, 201 hits) in 2014 and Victor Reyes (Lotte, 202 hits) in 2024. Narrowing the scope to domestic batters, it is a historic record born after a full 12 years since Seo Geon-chang in 2014.

The performance of Ryu Hyun-in, who started as a table setter, was also dazzling. Ryu Hyun-in swung a fierce bat with four hits in four at-bats, including two doubles, completing his first career "four-hit game" and leading the team's big win and winning streak.

Afterward, KT activated its bullpen to shut down Kiwoom's lineup without allowing any runs, comfortably completing a 9-run victory. KT starter Daniel pitched 5 innings, allowing 4 hits, striking out 8, and giving up 1 run to earn the win (his 5th of the season). Park Ji-hoon (2 innings), Joo Gwon, and Oh Won-seok (all 1 inning) who followed all pitched scoreless.

On the other hand, Kiwoom starter Park Jun-hyun took the loss, pitching 3⅓ innings, allowing 7 hits, walking 4, striking out 2, and giving up 4 runs.

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*This content was translated by AI.