Kim Do-young homer clinches 3rd for KIA
The KIA Tigers beat the LG Twins 4-2 in the regular-season finale at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field on the 12th to clinch third place. Park Jae-hyun put KIA ahead with a solo homer in the first, but Park Dong-won tied it in the second. Kim Sun-bin’s bunt single restored the lead in the fourth before Mun Jeong-bin tied it again with a solo shot in the sixth. The game was decided in the bottom of the eighth, when Kim Do-young lined a slider from LG’s Kenedy over the center-field wall for a go-ahead two-run homer. Starter Yang Hyeon-jong allowed one run over five innings, and Jeon Sang-hyeon retired LG’s heart of the order in the ninth. KIA advances directly to the semi-playoff and will host the wild-card winner in Game 1 on the 17th. Fourth-place LG faces fifth-place Doosan in the wild-card series starting on the 14th.
Source: Ilgan Sports
KT finish with first 10-game win streak, 90 wins
Regular-season champions KT Wiz beat the Samsung Lions 4-2 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park on the 12th, closing the season with the first 10-game winning streak in club history. Their previous best was nine. Ryu Hyun-in’s RBI hit put KT ahead in the first, before Kim Heon-gon tied it with a solo homer in the second. KT pulled away in the fourth on RBI hits by Jo Dae-hyun and Choi Won-jun, and Moon Sang-cheol sealed it with a homer in the ninth. Samsung got one back on Park Seung-gyu’s solo shot in the ninth. Starter So Hyeong-jun allowed one run over six innings for his 10th win. KT finished 90-49-5, surpassing the club record of 81 wins. It is only the third 90-win season since the league expanded to 10 teams, after Doosan’s 93 wins in 2016 and 2018.
Source: Ilgan Sports
Lotte beat Doosan 7-4, Reyes reaches 211 hits
The Lotte Giants beat the Doosan Bears 7-4 in the regular-season finale at Jamsil Baseball Stadium on the 12th. Han Dong-hee’s two-run homer gave Lotte the lead in the first, but a throwing error by first baseman Na Seung-yeop let Doosan tie it in the bottom half. Son Sung-bin’s solo homer and RBI hits by Victor Reyes and Na Seung-yeop made it 5-2 in the second, and Reyes’ solo homer in the sixth and Hwang Sung-bin’s RBI hit in the eighth sealed the win. Batting leadoff as the designated hitter, Reyes went 4-for-5 with a homer and two RBIs, finishing with 211 hits to clinch the league’s hit title ahead of KT’s Choi Won-jun (208). Lotte finished seventh. Fifth-place Doosan meets LG in the wild-card series on the 14th.
Source: Money Today (Star News)
Kim Do-young claims his first home run title
KIA Tigers star Kim Do-young sealed his first career home run title in the regular-season finale. His go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning against LG at Gwangju on the 12th was his 45th of the season, moving him past KT’s Sam Hilliard into sole possession of the league lead. It was also the 100th home run of his career. After clinching third place, manager Lee Bum-ho reflected, “Maybe it all happened to get a result like this.” He added that he would enjoy the win only for that day and think about nothing but the semi-playoff from the next day on. KIA will rest for about four days before hosting the wild-card winner in Game 1 of the best-of-five semi-playoff at Gwangju on the 17th.
Source: Money Today (Star News)
Lotte’s Kim Tae-hyung: contract ends, future unclear
Lotte Giants manager Kim Tae-hyung completed his three-year contract with the season finale against Doosan at Jamsil on the 12th. Kim took charge in October 2023 on a three-year deal worth a total of 2.4 billion won, but Lotte finished seventh in each of his three seasons from 2024 through this year. Lotte ended 2026 at 64-77-3. After the game, Kim said, “First, I want to tell the players they worked really hard and gave their best this season,” and also thanked the fans for their support. Asked about his future, he said, “I’m not saying anything right now.” He added that a decision will likely come within two days once he returns to Busan. The club has not yet made an official statement.
Source: Money Today (Star News)
So Hyeong-jun wins winning-percentage title in finale
KT Wiz pitcher So Hyeong-jun captured the league’s winning-percentage title with a victory in the regular-season finale. Pitching on four days’ rest against Samsung in Daegu on the 12th, he allowed one run over six innings for his 10th win (10-3), reaching double-digit wins for a second straight year. His .769 winning percentage edged Doosan’s Choi Min-seok (14-5, .737) for the top spot. “In the year we won the regular season, I got 10 wins again and was lucky enough to win the winning-percentage title,” So said. The 2020 Rookie of the Year added, “After going to the awards ceremony for Rookie of the Year, I never got anywhere near it again.” Looking back on the season, he said his command of the cutter and two-seamer did not go as planned, leading to many mistake pitches.
Source: Ilgan Sports
Samsung become first club to top 1.7 million fans
The Samsung Lions became the first of the 10 KBO clubs to draw more than 1.7 million fans in a single season. Through the season finale against KT on the 12th, Samsung’s home attendance reached 1,717,050. Across 73 home games, including two in Pohang, the club filled 99.4% of its seats and sold out 59 games. Other clubs also set records. LG (1,622,238), KIA (1,299,388), KT (1,022,972), Kiwoom (935,849) and NC (902,905) all set team single-season highs, while Doosan passed 1.5 million for the first time in club history with 1,507,522. Total KBO attendance for 2026 reached 12,770,551, surpassing last season’s 12,312,519.
Source: Sports Kyunghyang