I don't think there's anyone who didn't think of that day. The final solo shot after two outs in the top of the ninth inning. Did Oh Ji-hwan Wake Up LG's 2023 Winning DNA
Aug 03, 2025
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LG Twins' Oh Ji-hwan summoned Game 3 of the thrilling Korean Series two years ago.
On Nov. 10, 2023, an unforgettable day for any LG fan. Game 3 of the Korean Series, which took place at KT Wiz Park in Suwon, was a game that allowed visitors to know who won the trophy.
The game was decided by a home run in a fierce battle, and the winning team was LG. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Park Byung-ho's two-run shot led KT 7-5, but in the top of the ninth inning, Oh Ji-hwan hit a fastball from Kim Jae-yoon, the then KT closer, and hit a three-run shot over the right fence to win 8-7. LG, which led by 2 wins and 1 loss, won the fourth and fifth games in a row and won the Korean Series for the first time in 29 years with 4 wins and 1 loss. Oh Ji-hwan was named the MVP of the Korean Series at the time and became the main character of the Rolex watch that the club had kept to give to the MVP.
At Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on Tuesday, a different but similar situation was staged.
Oh Ji-hwan entered the batter's box after two outs in the top of the ninth inning, when the score was tied 2-2. Kim Jae-yoon was on the mound. Finisher Lee Ho-sung was put in as a temporary finisher as he fell out due to a back injury.
Oh Ji-hwan, who picked out the first and second balls, watched the high fork ball on the third pitch, but when it became 2B1S with a strike, he hit a 148km outside fastball on the fourth pitch, which flew to the center and crossed the fence. A solo shot with a 3-2 lead.
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In the bottom of the ninth inning, Yoo Young-chan blocked and won without losing a point, and now the gap with Hanwha is 0.5 game.
It was even more meaningful because it was the winning shot by Oh Ji-hwan, who had been sluggish throughout this season.
Oh Ji-hwan showed good performance with a batting average of 276 until April, but fell sharply to 186. In June, he only had a batting average of 500 (1 hit in 20 at-bats), which was less than 10 percent. He has been in the second division for 20 days, but no rebound in batting has been achieved.
Oh Ji-hwan, who finished the first half with a batting average of 2.18 with seven home runs and 28 RBIs, is batting .244 with one home run and two RBIs in the second half. It doesn't show a huge batting rebound, but it gives you a hit to help your team win. On July 22, the Gwangju KIA match scored on Park Hae-min's tie-breaking three-run shot in the top of the ninth inning, trailing 4-7. In the match against KIA on the 24th, he also came out as the leadoff hitter in the top of the eighth inning when he was 0-0, and got on base with an infield hit to the second baseman, becoming the starting point for eight points. In the game against Doosan Bears in Jamsil on the 25th, he also got on base with a heavy hit after one out in the top of the ninth inning, trailing 3-4, signaling the start of the turnaround.
Did the winning home run on the 2nd wake up LG and Oh Ji-hwan's sleeping 2023 winning DNA. I wonder how Oh Ji-hwan will show in the competition against Hanwha in the rest of the game.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
