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| The match between the KIA Tigers and the Samsung Lions at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 3rd. KIA manager Lee Bum-ho is deep in thought. Gwangju = Reporter Park Jae-man pjm@sportschosun.com /2025.04.03/ |
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Who would have predicted that 'Absolutely 1st round' would fall to last place.
No matter how early in the season, it's shocking. Now that I see the number '10' written next to the KIA Tigers team name.
On the 12th, the KBO League played only three games due to rain. The match between Gwangju KIA Tigers-SSG Landers and Suwon KT Wiz-Samsung Lions was postponed due to rain.
Meanwhile, Kiwoom Heroes defeated Hanwha Eagles in Daejeon. This victory shook the table.
Doosan Bears and Hanwha, who had 7 wins and 11 losses until the 11th, tied for 7th place. And KIA was ninth with 6 wins and 10 losses, and Kiwoom was lowest with 6 wins and 11 losses. However, only Kiwoom took the victory on this day. KIA rested, Doosan and Hanwha lost. So Doosan, Hanwha, and Kiwoom tied for 7th place with 7 wins and 11 losses.
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| Coach Lee Bum-ho comes to the ground to protest against Lotte Na Kyun-an during a game between KIA and Lotte at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 9th and KIA Wisdom at the top of the 5th inning with one out. Busan = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.04.09/ |
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The problem is that KIA, which had been still, fell to the bottom. There was no difference with the joint seventh-place teams, but KIA's winning rate was only 375, while the three teams were 389.
Of course, there is only a half-game difference between the lowest KIA and the sixth-ranked NC Dinos, 1.5 games with the fifth-ranked Lotte Giants, 2.5 games with the fourth-ranked KT Wiz, and 3.5 games with the third-ranked Samsung Lions. The rankings can change at any time, and they can go up and down. It's still early in the season.
However, even on a single day, the fact that KIA ranks 10th can be symbolic. In addition, he has a handicap that is too big to challenge for the championship. It's already eight games apart from the LG Twins, who are leading 'crazy momentum'.
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| Choi Hyung-woo and Wisdom, who scored on a two-run turnaround by KIA and Lotte at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on the 8th, are sharing joy with manager Lee Bum-ho in the top of the sixth inning with two outs and full base KIA Byun Woo-hyuk. Busan = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.04.08/ |
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KIA became the unified champion by winning the regular season and the Korean Series with overwhelming performance last season. This year, he was given the title 'Absolute 1st place' by experts before the opening. In addition to maintaining most of the winning power, a special foreign pitcher named Oller joined to form a one-two punch with nails. Kia was at the top of the list last season despite being troubled by foreign pitchers as the second option. Expectations were high as Wizdom, a slugger who hit 88 home runs in the Major League instead of Socrates, who had ups and downs, said he would come. Jang Hyun-sik transferred to the LG Twins, but he was told that the bullpen might be stronger by filling the position with Cho Sang-woo.
Such a team is currently in last place after 16 games since the opening. It's really hard to imagine. That's why it's hard to say that baseball is hard.
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| The opening match between NC and KIA at Gwangju KIA Champions Field on the 22nd, KIA Kim Do-young hit a hit and went to first base in the bottom of the third inning, and is being replaced with leg pain. Gwangju = Reporter's wook@sportschosun.com/2025.03.22/ |
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It is a total catastrophe. From the opening game, MVP Kim Do-young was out due to a hamstring injury. Since then, something has been unusual. Park Chan-ho took more than 10 days off due to a knee injury, and a bigger crack began to occur in the team. When Park Chan-ho came, Kim Sun-bin was out due to a calf injury, and Park Chan-ho, who returned, is also not in normal condition. He is batting .179 in eight games this season.
Yang Hyun-jong failed to improve his condition on the mound and lost only three games in four games. Yoon Young-chul even showed tears after showing a severe slump against the Lotte Giants on the 11th. While the bullpen generally felt that it did not raise its condition 100% in time for the opening, another large bomb exploded on the 12th. This is because Kwak Do-gyu left due to an elbow injury.
As mentioned above, it is said that it is early in the season that the ranking can change even if one game is won, but KIA's early steps in the season are unusual.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
