Is this real? No run support in 18⅓ innings against LG, and Park Jun-soon also out — Can Doosan rest easy with Kwak Bin starting? [WC Game 1]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Kwak Bin (27), the top pitcher of this season in professional baseball, is set to start, but the Doosan Bears cannot be at ease. This is because they have been particularly weak against the LG Twins this season.

Doosan will take on LG in Game 1 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO Postseason Wild Card Series at Seoul Jamsil Baseball Stadium starting at 6:30 p.m. on the 14th.

Doosan, which entered the fall baseball as the fifth-place team, is in an absolutely disadvantaged position compared to LG, who starts with one win. They are in a desperate situation where they must win two consecutive games to advance to the Junior Playoffs. One silver lining is that Doosan's designated starting pitcher is Kwak Bin, who performed as the best pitcher of this season.

Kwak Bin pitched 161 innings across 27 games this season, recording an 11-7 win-loss record and a 2.24 ERA (ERA). He firmly claimed first place in ERA and also won the strikeout title (197 strikeouts), achieving a pitching double crown. His batting average against was 0.216, and his walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP) was 1.04, figures befitting an elite pitcher.

However, he has shrunk whenever it comes to fall baseball. With a career record of 0-3 in six postseason games and an ERA of just 7.58, he earned the label of "chicken-hearted," but expectations are high that this season will be different. This is because he confidently established himself as the top ace for the Lee Kkeul-myeo (CEO) team after advancing to the second round of this year's World Baseball Classic (WBC) and winning a gold medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

Above all, looking at his performance this season, Kwak Bin has become a completely different pitcher from before. It is hard to find any skeptical eyes toward him.

The problem lies in the lineup. In three games against LG this season, Kwak Bin pitched 18⅓ innings, striking out a whopping 27 batters and allowing only four runs. His ERA of 1.96 was better than his season average. Ironically, however, he ended up with no wins and just one loss.

The number of runs the lineup provided while Kwak Bin was on the mound was surprisingly "0." There was no way to secure a win. In the game on the 3rd of last month, he shut down the opposition for seven innings with one run allowed, but the lineup failed to score a single point, resulting in a 0-1 shutout loss and ultimately making him the losing pitcher.

This is a clear indication of Doosan's weakness this season. While Doosan ranks first in team ERA (3.86), their team batting average (0.264) is seventh, and their runs scored (688) are eighth.

The issue is that they struggle even more when facing LG. With a record of 4 wins, 11 losses, and 1 draw against LG this season, the reality for Doosan was comparable to that of the leading KT Wiz (4-11-1).

A point of further concern is that Park Jun-soon, who led the lineup, was removed from the roster due to a thigh injury. In place of Park Jun-soon, who had made a significant impact by ranking second in team home runs (16), third in RBIs (61), and third in batting average (0.302, based on 300+ at-bats), Son Ah-seop was named to the roster. Although experienced, Son suffered from severe slump this season. Son has a career postseason batting average of 0.330 (61 hits in 185 at-bats) across 48 games.

Of course, LG also has uncertainties. With Go Woo-seok unable to participate in the postseason as he joined after the player registration deadline, closer Son Ju-young was excluded from the roster because his neck muscle strain turned out to be more severe than expected. In a situation where the importance of the starting pitcher has grown, Carlos KARAasco showed disappointing performance late in the season, unlike when he first joined. The key will be whether he can recapture the form he displayed during his seven-inning perfect pitch against Doosan and in his KBO debut game.

LG's team batting average is also low at 0.264, and they drew a downward curve with long losing streaks late in the season. They are at a disadvantage compared to Doosan in terms of starting pitcher weight, and considering the stages after the Junior Playoffs, they appear focused on pouring everything into Game 1 to secure a win.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.View Original