In the end, he could not break free from the "KIA phobia"! Fedex, plagued by a nightmare of a 5.25 ERA, allowed home runs to Castro and Han Jun-soo, collapsing for five runs in 4⅔ innings.

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The brutal head-to-head data from the regular season did not lie on the autumn stage either. The struggles of Samsung Lions foreign pitcher Chris Fedex (30) against the KIA Tigers continued into the postseason. From the very first game of the fall baseball, he failed to withstand the firepower of the Tiger squad and collapsed miserably.

In the first game of the Playoffs against the KIA Tigers held on the 26th at Daegu Samsung Lions Park, Fedex, who had struggled in two regular-season appearances against KIA with no wins, two losses, and a 5.25 ERA, was also shaken early in his first start of this short series, unable to overcome the power of the Tiger lineup.

The start was nearly perfect. Fedex began smoothly by striking out leadoff batter Park Jung-woo and the following Park Jae-hyun with consecutive swinging strikeouts. However, the focus of KIA after two outs shook the ace.

The walk given to No. 3 hitter Kim Do-young after a nine-pitch full-count battle was the spark. Kim Do-young stole second base without hesitation on the first pitch of No. 4 hitter Castro's at-bat. The shaken Fedex allowed a leadoff single to Castro on a line drive to right field. During this sequence, an unfortunate judgment by first baseman Lewin Diaz in catching the ball and an error on the throw home by the right fielder compounded, causing the situation to spiral out of control rapidly. Following Kim Do-young's run, batter-runner Castro also reached third base, and Fedex took a hit for a double down the left-field line from Na Sung-bum, conceding two runs in the first inning alone.

While there was some bad luck due to a lack of defensive help, the nightmare did not end there. In the top of the third inning as well, after securing two outs early, he self-destructed. After allowing a single to left field to Kim Do-young, the battle with No. 4 hitter Castro arrived.

Fedex showed extreme tension, stepping off the pitcher's mound three times while being mindful of the pitch clock, and ultimately was hit hard by Castro, who had patiently fouled balls to gauge his timing, on a ninth-pitch cutter (117 km/h) aimed at the body. A massive two-run home run that soared over the right-field fence with a distance of 115 meters. The score widened to 0-4.

It was not over. Fedex, who took the mound in the top of the fourth inning, also failed to control the bottom of the lineup. Against designated hitter Han Jun-soo, who led off the inning, a third pitch thrown with a 1-1 count that drifted slightly toward the middle of the plate was hit hard. The ball connected for a solo home run with a distance of 120 meters, landing in the upper section of the right-field stands at Lions Park.

Following Castro's two-run homer, Fedex allowed a decisive solo shot to Han Jun-soo, and his runs conceded ballooned to five in an instant. Fedex, unable to erase the "Tiger phobia" that had held him back throughout the regular season, bowed his head after being pummeled despite carrying the heavy responsibility of establishing momentum in the first game.

Fedex left the mound before completing the fifth inning. He retired leadoff batter Park Jae-hyun with a flyout to left field, but faced Kim Do-young next, engaging in a tight battle that went 13 pitches, bringing his total pitch count to 94. The Samsung bench brought Bae Chan-seung onto the mound with two outs in the fifth inning. Fedex's final line was 4⅔ innings, five hits allowed (two home runs), four strikeouts, two walks, and five runs conceded. Fedex's top speed on this day was 154 km/h. He mixed fastballs, two-seam fastballs, cutters, changeups, curves, and sweepers.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original