LG beat Doosan, reach semi-playoffs
The LG Twins beat the Doosan Bears 4-1 in Game 1 of the Wild Card series at Jamsil Baseball Stadium on the 14th, clinching a spot in the semi-playoffs. Austin Dean struck first with a two-run homer to left off Doosan ace Kwak Been in the bottom of the 1st. LG starter Carlos Carrasco earned the win with a quality start: six innings, four hits, one walk, three strikeouts and one run. Doosan got a run back on pinch-hitter Yang Suk-hwan’s sacrifice fly to center with the bases loaded and one out in the 7th, but a superb catch by center fielder Park Hae-min stopped the rally there. Kwak took the loss despite allowing two runs on three hits with 10 strikeouts over six innings, setting a new all-time record for career strikeouts in Wild Card games. Fourth-place LG, which started the series with a one-win advantage, needed just one game to advance.
Source: Sports Donga · Sports Donga
Park Hae-min: “A new kind of fun”
LG Twins captain Park Hae-min shone on both sides of the ball in the Wild Card game. Against Doosan on the 14th, he sprinted down a deep drive from Yang Suk-hwan with the bases loaded and one out in the 7th, a decisive defensive play, and reached base twice with a hit and a walk. LG, last year’s combined regular-season and Korean Series champion, finished fourth this season. Before the game Park said his teammates’ pride had probably been hurt and that avoiding an upset was the top priority. “In 2023 and 2025, when we won it all, we were waiting and defending,” he said. “Now we have to climb from below. There will definitely be a different kind of fun.” Park also played in all 144 games again this year, extending his streak of full seasons to five.
Source: Sports Donga
Doosan’s Kim advises Park Jun-soon
Doosan Bears manager Kim Won-hyung offered heartfelt advice to second-year infielder Park Jun-soon, who missed the Wild Card roster through injury. Park started 98 regular-season games this year, batting .302 with 16 home runs and 61 RBIs as a key part of the heart of the order, and also helped Korea win gold at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. But he felt pain in his thigh while running the bases against Samsung on the 4th, was diagnosed with a partial muscle tear and came off the roster on the 6th. Before the LG game on the 14th, Kim said: “There are plenty of chances ahead. I want to tell him not to be discouraged. But staying healthy is part of your ability too. I hope he plays a full year without injury and aims to make it to the postseason. I’d rather give him advice than comfort.”
Source: Sports Donga
Kim Do-yeong wins first HR crown
KIA Tigers star Kim Do-yeong has won the home run title for the first time in his career. Batting third and playing third base in the regular-season finale against the LG Twins in Gwangju on the 12th, he broke a 2-2 tie in the 8th with a go-ahead two-run homer to center off LG reliever John Kennedy. It was his 45th of the season, one more than Sam Hilliard, who chased him to the end. Powered by the blast, KIA won 4-2 and earned a direct berth in the semi-playoffs. Kim, who finished second with 38 homers in 2024 and played just 30 games last year because of injuries, took the title despite missing time for the Asian Games in September. He finished the season with a .308 average, 45 homers, 118 RBIs, 120 runs and a 1.060 OPS in 135 games, and is a strong favorite for his second MVP award in two years.
Source: Sports Donga
SSG to host “Choi-Kwang Baseball 1429”
The SSG Landers will hold a season-finale event game, “Choi-Kwang Baseball 1429,” at Incheon SSG Landers Field on the 17th. Veterans Choi Jeong and Kim Kwang-hyun will each serve as managers, and the event’s name combines their names and uniform numbers, 14 and 29. SSG has held similar event games named after its player-managers in 2024 and 2025. The game will be a seven-inning contest in which pitchers and position players swap roles, with a special rule that a manager must wear a blindfold and pick the outcome himself whenever he requests a video review. After the bottom of the 4th, the whole team will line up on the field to sing the club’s cheer song “Yeonan Budu” with fans. The first 20,000 fans will receive bandanas in team colors, and SPOTV will broadcast the game live, a first for one of the club’s event games.
Source: Sports Donga
Lotte add 4 NPB prospects for Fall League
The Lotte Giants will continue their player-development exchange by adding four Nippon Professional Baseball players to their roster for the 2026 Ulsan-KBO Fall League, which opens on the 15th. The Chiba Lotte Marines sent pitcher Kosuke Nagashima and infielder Tsuyoshi Tanimura, while the Yomiuri Giants sent catcher-infielder Ayumu Nakata and pitcher Shido Fukita. The instructional-style tournament runs for 17 days from the 15th at Ulsan Munsu Baseball Stadium and the Gijang-KBO Baseball Center, and each club may register up to seven extra players regardless of nationality or affiliation. The four players arrived on the 12th and began training with Lotte’s Futures (minor league) squad at Sangdong Stadium on the 13th. Staff from Chiba Lotte’s and Yomiuri’s roster, development and training departments will also visit. Lotte, winners of the inaugural tournament in 2024, are aiming to reclaim the title.
Source: Sports Donga