KT Wiz has claimed the KBO regular season title for the first time in five years, securing a direct spot in the Korean Series.
On October 5, KT defeated the Lotte Giants 9-0 at home in Suwon, powered by three home runs.
This victory marked KT's sixth consecutive win, bringing their season record to 86 wins, 5 ties, and 49 losses (a .637 winning percentage). Meanwhile, the second-place Samsung Lions (82 wins, 3 ties, 54 losses; .603 winning percentage) lost to the Doosan Bears 7-5, widening the gap between the teams to 4.5 games.
With this win, KT has erased all magic numbers for the championship, confirming their first-place finish in the regular season regardless of the outcomes of the remaining four games.
This is KT's first regular season championship since 2021, when they not only topped the regular season but also won the Korean Series, achieving their first combined championship.
Five years ago, KT finished the regular season tied with Samsung, necessitating a playoff to determine the top seed. This year, they secured the title in front of their home fans with games still remaining.
The path to this season's championship was fiercely competitive. After hovering around second and third place in the first half, KT took sole possession of first place on August 1. They faced a setback in late August when they briefly lost the top spot to Samsung, but reclaimed it on September 10 and maintained their lead until the end.
KT, which joined the KBO League as its 10th team in 2015, is now aiming for its second combined championship, following their success in 2021.
In the decisive game, both pitching and hitting were strong. Starting pitcher Logan Allen threw 110 pitches over eight innings, allowing seven hits with no walks and no runs, while striking out 14 batters to earn his seventh win of the season (5 losses).
KT's offense exploded in the first inning, scoring seven runs against Lotte's starter Kim Jin-wook. The scoring began with a double from leadoff hitter Choi Won-jun, followed by timely doubles from Sam Hilliard and Kim Sang-soo, and an infield hit from Han Seung-taek, bringing in four runs. In a two-out, one-on, three-on-base situation, ninth batter Jang Jun-won hit a three-run home run over the left field fence.
Jang Jun-won added a solo home run in the sixth inning, marking his second home run of the game (sixth and seventh of the season). In the seventh inning, Ahn Hyun-min hit a solo home run (his 14th of the season), extending the lead to nine runs.
On the other hand, Samsung, which was vying for a comeback, could not recover from the struggles of starting pitcher Ariel Hurado, who allowed six runs (five earned) in 6⅓ innings against Doosan. Although Kim Sung-yoon hit a grand slam in the seventh inning to spark a rally, Samsung ultimately could not turn the game around and secured a playoff spot as the second seed in the regular season.
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.