Excluding Hong Chang-ki, placing 'knee-injured' Oh Ji-hwan in the No. 2 spot... LG Yeom Kyung-yeop's last-ditch gamble: "We need a batter to get things rolling" [Quasi-Playoffs Game 3 On-Site]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

LG Twins manager Yeom Kyung-yeop (58), cornered after two consecutive losses, pinned his last hope on a batting line rebound. He threw down the gauntlet by excluding former batting champion Hong Chang-ki (33) from the starting lineup and placing injured Oh Ji-hwan (36) in the No. 2 spot.

Ahead of the third game of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO Postseason Quasi-Playoffs (QPO, best-of-five series) against the KIA Tigers at Seoul Jamsil Baseball Stadium at 6:30 p.m. on the 20th, manager Yeom Kyung-yeop emphasized, "Ultimately, we must be able to win the battle of the batting line."

LG had been cornered after losing the first and second games in Gwangju by scores of 1-5 and 3-6, respectively. They must win all three remaining games to advance to the Playoffs (PO). In particular, it was disappointing that the batting line managed only four runs in the first two QPO games. In Game 1, Song Chan-ui's lead-off solo home run was the only score, and in Game 2, despite recording nine hits, they were stuck at three runs.

Manager Yeom stated, "As seen in Games 1 and 2, ultimately we must be able to win the battle of the batting line. I think both teams' defensive baseball has come up to a nearly equal level." He added, "Of course, in Game 2, (Lim) Chan-gyu collapsed early, but ultimately, we need two or three players from our batting line who can get things rolling." He continued, "In the case of KIA, they have players like Kim Do-young and their foreign batter who anchor the lineup, so their hitting flow is good. I think we also need people who can unravel the game to step up and solve it."

To this end, changes were made to the starting lineup as well. LG arranged the batting order in the following sequence: Park Hae-min (center fielder) - Oh Ji-hwan (shortstop) - Austin Dean (designated hitter) - Song Chan-ui (left fielder) - Moon Bo-kyung (third baseman) - Moon Jung-bin (first baseman) - Moon Sung-ju (right fielder) - Park Dong-won (catcher) - Gu Bon-hyuk (second baseman). The starting pitcher is Carlos Karasuko.

The most eye-catching choice was placing Oh Ji-hwan in the No. 2 spot. Oh Ji-hwan, who is not in normal physical condition due to a partial tear of the medial collateral ligament in his left knee, was moved up to the top of the order. Manager Yeom revealed regarding Oh Ji-hwan's batting order position, "The No. 2 spot has been something I've been struggling with all season long. Many opinions came out suggesting we try moving (Oh) Ji-hwan up this time, so I gave it a shot."

Deploying Song Chan-ui in the No. 4 spot was also a choice considering recent hitting form. Moon Sung-ju (29), returning from injury, was also included in the starting lineup. Manager Yeom explained the reason for adjusting the batting order of Moon Jung-bin (23) and Song Chan-ui: "Right now, it seems (Song) Chan-ui has better hitting form than (Moon) Jung-bin, so I moved Chan-ui up." He further revealed the background of his decision by adding, "The hitting department and power analysis side said that (Moon) Sung-ju's recent hitting practice feel is not bad."

Hong Chang-ki (33), who had a sluggish regular season batting average of 0.239, was excluded from the starting lineup. Shin Min-jae (30), who has a hamstring injury, also did not make the starting roster. Placing Austin as the designated hitter and assigning Moon Jung-bin to first base defense was also a decision reflecting defensive evaluations.

However, manager Yeom's ultimate conclusion was the batting line. Even if starting pitcher Carlos Karasuko (39) reproduces the excellent pitching he showed in the previous Wild Card Decider, they cannot win if the bats do not come alive. Manager Yeom said, "If we lose today, it's over no matter what," while expecting a rebound from the batting line.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original