“Amazing” ERA of “0”: Why wasn’t this Samsung player selected for the Korean national team? Praise explodes for the “hero” possessed by the autumn wind [KS]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Why wasn’t a player like this selected for the national team? Samsung fans are showering praise on the performance of Samsung Lions left-handed reliever Lee Seung-min (26).

Samsung secured a 5-1 victory in Game 3 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO Postseason Korea Series (best-of-seven) against KT Wiz on the 6th at Daegu Samsung Lions Park.

Samsung had lost Game 1, held in Suwon, 7-8, but won Game 2, 3-2, after a fierce battle that extended to the 12th inning. After moving to Daegu with a 1-1 record, they took Game 3 to seize the advantageous position.

In the history of the Korea Series, when teams are tied 1-1 and one team wins Game 3, that team has gone on to win the championship in 16 out of 18 such instances (88.9%).

On the pitching side, Huardo shone, while on the offensive side, Koo Ja-wook stood out. Huardo pitched a winning performance, allowing six hits allowed with no walks or hit batters, striking out six and giving up one run over seven innings.

In the batting department, Koo Ja-wook also fulfilled his role as the go-to hitter. In particular, Koo Ja-wook delivered a two-RBI triple that nearly cleared the right-field fence in the bottom of the 2nd inning, significantly boosting Samsung’s momentum.

And there is a hidden hero for Samsung who must not be forgotten. That is left-handed reliever Lee Seung-min.

Lee Seung-min took the mound as the second pitcher in the top of the 8th inning, following Huardo. This indicated just how much trust the Samsung bench placed in him.

The opposing lineup featured their top hitters, batting orders 1-2-3. However, Lee Seung-min remained calm. Against leadoff hitter Kim Min-hyuk, he struck him out on a swinging strike with his fifth pitch from a favorable 1-2 count. The decisive pitch was a slider. Next, against second batter Ahn Hyun-min, he also induced an infield grounder to first base with a changeup as the fourth pitch from a favorable 1-2 count. Two outs.

The next batter was Kim Hyeon-soo. Lee Seung-min’s fastball (142 km/h) was attacked by Kim Hyeon-soo, who connected for a single to center field. But that was as far as it went. Against the following hitter, Hilliard, he threw a slider on the first pitch and recorded an out on a foul fly to third base, overcoming a major hurdle.

Ultimately, in the bottom of the 8th inning, Park Seung-gyu drew a decisive solo home run to left-center field. In the top of the 9th inning, relief pitcher Kim Tae-hoon took the mound; although he issued a bases-loaded walk to Han Seung-taek with two outs, he recorded Oh Yun-seok on a fly out to left field, securing the victory for Samsung.

Lee Seung-min has been performing at his best since the playoffs. He appeared in all five games of the playoff series against KIA Tigers, pitching a rock-solid game over 5⅓ innings while allowing only one run (ERA 1.69).

After the playoffs concluded, Samsung Manager Park Jin-man, the team’s commander-in-chief, stated that “the hidden Most Valuable Player (MVP) is Lee Seung-min,” giving a thumbs-up before adding, “He must have been physically exhausted, yet he appeared in all five games. We always prepared (Lee) Seung-min to face KIA’s top of the order. He reliably fulfilled his role in crucial situations against key hitters like Kim Do-young, Harold Castro, and Na Seong-beom. It became the foundation for us to advance past the playoffs. The fatigue level of one postseason game is similar to that of several regular-season games, yet he handled all five games perfectly,” offering no shortage of praise.

And in the Korea Series as well, he has played a decisive role in shutting down the opposing team’s top hitters. In Game 2 of the Korea Series, Lee Seung-min entered as the second pitcher immediately after starter Fedak left the mound, and faced the “3-4-5” cleanup trio right away. Lee Seung-min displayed dominant pitching by recording Ahn Hyun-min on a fly out to right field, Hilliard on a fly out to shortstop, and Kim Hyeon-soo on an infield grounder to first base. Later, in the 9th inning, he struck out leadoff hitter Jang Sung-woo but allowed a double to center field to Heo Kyung-min before leaving the mound. Ultimately, Samsung was able to win Game 2 as well. His record in the two Korea Series games this year is one hold over 2⅓ innings with two hits allowed, two strikeouts, and no runs allowed. His ERA is “0.” Samsung fans are sending praise for Lee Seung-min’s outstanding performance.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original