LG scored eight points in the top of the eighth inning of the Mega Twin Spo, KIA sweep → four consecutive wins. KIA bullpen collapsed again after 6 scoreless innings as a major pitcher. The distant second place.
Jul 24, 2025
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In an away game against KIA at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 24th, LG won 8-0 with Moon Sung-joo's two-run double and Kim Hyun-soo's three-run shot in the top of the eighth inning.
LG won all three consecutive games against KIA and recorded four consecutive wins. In the second half of the year, he opened the second half with a winning series of 2-1 losses and three consecutive wins against Lotte and KIA.
KIA started this series with 2.5 games with LG, but eventually lost all three games due to the collapse of the bullpen, widening the gap to 5.5 games.
LG, who won all of them after two consecutive close games, aimed for a sweep while KIA had to prevent a sweep.
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It was important for the starting pitchers to throw as long as possible because both teams, including KIA's Jung Hae-young and Cho Sang-woo and LG's Yoo Young-chan, Kim Jin-sung and Jang Hyun-sik, were unable to use finishing and setup men due to two days of bloodshed.
In addition, a pitching match was conducted in which the two teams' left-handed starters Yang Hyun-jong and Son Joo-young played well.
Yang Hyun-jong allowed three hits, three walks, and three strikeouts in six innings. He also set a new record of surpassing 2,600 innings for the second time in history. Son Joo-young also allowed three hits, two walks, and five strikeouts in six ⅓ innings. The two pitchers blocked so well that they did not score, so neither of them recorded a win or loss.
LG had hits by Shin Min-jae and Kim Hyun-soo in the top of the first inning, but Shin Min-jae ran to the third base and was tagged out by Kim Ho-ryeong's accurate throw, so there was no significant chance after that, but with two walks in the top of the sixth inning, Moon Bo-kyung only grounded out in front of the first base.
KIA had a chance to get a runner on second base with one out due to a walk and error in the bottom of the third inning, but it failed to follow up, and there was no opportunity to score.
Kim Sun-bin's left-handed hit in the bottom of the seventh inning gave him a chance to hit first base with no outs. Oh Sun-woo struck out swinging, but Han Jun-su hit a left-handed hit to create a chance for the first and second bases with one out. Eventually, he replaced Lee Jung-yong.
KIA immediately put Ko Jong-wook instead of Lee Chang-jin to aim for the first point. However, after a full count match, he struck out swinging. Kim Ho-ryeong also failed to get the first run due to a strikeout.
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The chance of a first base with no outs came, and Park Hae-min's fake bunt and slash became a heavy hit, creating the best chance of the day with no outs and runners on the first and third bases.
In the end, KIA also lowered Sung Young-tak, which it had thrown since the sixth inning, and raised Choi Ji-min. However, Shin Min-jae drew a straight walk and loaded the bases with no outs.
KIA put up Lee Joon-young again, but Moon Sung-joo hit a right-center double at the first pitch to make it 2-0, and Kim Hyun-soo hit a three-run shot over the right-center fence to make it 5-0 in an instant. Since then, LG continued to hit hits and added an additional three points to make it 8-0 to create a comfortable score gap in the bullpen, which lacked a must-win group. Later, Ham Deok-ju in the bottom of the eighth inning and Kim Young-woo in the bottom of the ninth inning quickly blocked KIA's batting line without losing a point.
Lee Jung-yong, who saved the crisis in the bottom of the seventh inning, became a winning pitcher and earned his fourth win of the season (1 loss). LG also hit 11 hits on the day, showing its improved hitting sense with double-digit hits in all three games, raising expectations for the second-half race.
KIA expected the hit to revive by drastically changing the batting order, but failed to change the game with only four hits.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
