 |
| KT-KIA match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st. Cho Hyung-joon, who blocked six scoreless innings, is coming down. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
The 5th place is ours!
KT Wiz defeated the KIA Tigers and drove the last ticket fight of the fall baseball to the end.
KT won a thrilling come-from-behind victory of 9-3 in the last showdown of the season against KIA at Gwangju Kia Champions Field on the 1st thanks to five runs and a big inning in the third inning.
KT was driven to the brink of a five-way race. It was expected to occupy a stable autumn baseball position, but it was recently crushed by the NC Dinos' scary streak. It was NC's seventh consecutive win in Changwon the previous day. As a result of the match, the difference between the two teams disappeared, and NC, which is slightly ahead of KT in the winning rate due to many draws, rose to fifth place.
 |
| KT-KIA match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st. When KT starter So Hyung-joon lost a point from the 1st inning, coach Je Chun-mo goes up to advise. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
With two games left side by side, the situation was over if KT lost to KIA and NC beat the LG Twins. However, KT beat KIA on the same day and led the team to the last five games on the 3rd.
It was right that KT had an advantage in all circumstances. KIA, which has already been confirmed to be eliminated from the postseason, was conducting an experiment focusing on backup players, and even Park Chan-ho, who was playing, was excluded on this day.
 |
| KT-KIA match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st. Yoon Do-hyun, with no outs and runners on the first and second bases, hit a two-run triple in the bottom of the first inning and collided with Heo Kyung-min, causing pain. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
But there were variables. Cho Hyung-joon, the starting player he trusted, showed difficulty from the beginning. It was shaken by allowing leading rookie Chung Hyun-chang to hit the middle field, and allowed Park Jae-hyun to hit the right field and even a sweeping triple to Yoon Do-hyun. This wasn't the end of it. Oh Sun-woo's timely hit to the middle field was also made. Three runs.
Fortunately, Han Jun-su overcame the crisis by hitting Kim Kyu-sung, Jung Hae-won, and Joo Hyo-sang after five consecutive hits.
 |
| KT-KIA match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st. Aller, who took the mound as a starting pitcher for KIA, is coming down after finishing the first inning without losing a point. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
Cho Hyung-joon has stabilized since the second inning. And KT turned the game around in the third inning. KIA starter Oler, who had been throwing enormous fastballs from the beginning due to his desire to renew his contract, suddenly showed difficulty like Cho Hyung-joon in the first inning. The walk given to Kim Sang-soo after one out was a cause of fire. He then allowed consecutive hits to Jang Joon-won and Huh Kyung-min, giving them their first run. He struck out Kim Min-hyuk, but he couldn't overcome Ahn Hyun-min's crisis and was hit with an additional timely hit. In addition, Kang Baek-ho's RBI single and Hwang Jae-kyun's sweeping two-run double came out, dedicating five runs and big innings.
 |
| KT-KIA match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st. Hwang Jae-gyun, with two outs and runners on the first and third bases, cheers after hitting a timely two-run hit in the top of the third inning. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
Thus, the atmosphere of the game was completely over to KT. KIA, which lost its fighting spirit, showed weak offense after the first inning. On the contrary, KT added two score points against KIA bullpen Choi Ji-min in the seventh inning with Kim Min-hyuk's infield grounder RBI and opponent's wild pitch. Kim Min-hyuk's ball was actually a ball that pitcher Choi Ji-min could catch, but he was hit by the glove and flowed toward the shortstop, leading to a run. Huh Kyung-min's double, which came out earlier, was also a big shock to rookie Park Heon's poor defense of the average right-wing surface. In fact, it was an error-prone play. KT finished the game comfortably with up to two points in the eighth inning.
 |
| KT-KIA match held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st. Kang Baek-ho, who scored during Hwang Jae-kyun's timely hit with two outs and runners on the first and third bases in the top of the third inning, is welcomed. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
KT, which won the game, put up foreign pitcher Patrick in the seventh inning following starter Cho Hyung-joon. Cho Hyung-joon shook off his slump in the first inning and scored three runs and a quality start in six innings, giving the team a valuable victory. And he won 10 games in the season. He returned to the court last year after elbow surgery, and this is a great achievement as he played his first full-time season after surgery this year. Originally, he was scheduled to switch to a bullpen after throwing 130 innings as a starter to manage his condition, but it paid off sweetly despite the confusion of his position going back and forth due to urgent team circumstances. Manager Lee Kang-chul also did his best to manage Cho Hyung-joon by increasing the interval between the pitches as much as possible.
 |
| At the Kia Champions Field in Gwangju on the 1st, Patrick, who took the mound in the bottom of the seventh inning, pitches. Gwangju = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.10.1/ |
|
On the contrary, Kia starter Oler pitched perfectly in the first and second innings of the day and collapsed in the third inning, becoming a losing pitcher. I strongly hope to renew my contract next year, but I did not make a strong impression on the last pitch of the day. In this way, the KBO League debut season is wrapped up.
KT will play the final game of the season against the Hanwha Eagles at home on the 3rd. This is where all fate is determined.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
