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The LG Twins, aiming for a direct berth into the Junior Playoffs, face a fateful two-game series against the Lotte Giants.
LG will play an away game against Lotte in the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season at Busan Sajik Baseball Stadium at 2 p.m. on the 9th.
LG is currently ranked fourth in the league with a record of 77 wins, 63 losses, and 1 draw. They are trailing third-place KIA Tigers (76 wins, 62 losses, 2 draws) by one percentage point in winning percentage, despite being tied in games back.
Including today's game, LG has only three games remaining. After playing the two-game series against Lotte at Sajik on the 9th and 10th, they will take a day off on the 11th before facing KIA in the final regular season game in Gwangju on the 12th.
For LG, the immediate priority is to set up a scenario where they can reclaim third place by winning the final regular season game against KIA on the 12th.
The starting pitcher matchup is a point of interest in today's game.
LG will start foreign ace Carlos KARAasco. As LG must win at all costs to deploy their full strength, they have no room for complacency.
KARAasco joined LG as a new foreign pitcher last August and has appeared in 10 games, recording 6 wins, 2 losses, and an ERA of 3.93. He has pitched a total of 55 innings, allowing 47 hits (3 home runs), issuing 9 walks, striking out 43 batters, and giving up 27 runs (24 earned). His WHIP is 1.02, and the batting average against him is 0.225. He has recorded five quality starts (at least six innings with three or fewer earned runs allowed).
He has faced Lotte only once this season. In an away game at Sajik Baseball Stadium on August 29, he started and pitched six innings, allowing five hits (one home run), issuing one walk, striking out four batters, and giving up three runs (two earned) to earn the win.
On the other hand, Lotte, which has already been eliminated from the postseason, will send out a rookie pitcher who may be unfamiliar to baseball fans. The 20-year-old right-handed prospect is Kim Han-gyeol. A graduate of Munchang Elementary (Gwangmyeong Little), Seongnam Middle School, and Seongnam High School, Kim was drafted by Lotte in the sixth round, 54th overall, of the 2026 rookie draft. His signing bonus is 60 million won.
Boasting a physique of 193cm and 93kg, he has appeared in eight games this season, recording one loss with no wins and an ERA of 8.10. He has pitched a total of 10 innings, allowing seven hits (two home runs), issuing six walks, striking out nine batters, and giving up 10 runs (nine earned). His WHIP is 1.30, and the batting average against him is 0.184.
He has only one start to his name. It was his professional debut on August 12 in an away game against the SSG Landers, where he started and took the loss after pitching four and one-third innings, allowing two hits, issuing three walks, striking out five batters, and giving up four runs (four earned). He has also appeared once against LG in a home game on August 29. At that time, without recording a single out, he allowed one hit, issued one walk, hit one batter, and gave up one run (one earned).
What kind of performance will the rookie pitcher show against the LG lineup?
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*This content was translated by AI.View Original
