4 consecutive wins + 7 wins in the second half…’W/L margin -14→+1′ KT Steel Magic overtakes 4th place and 0 & 3 points in the standings
The KT Wiz are shaking up the mid-table in the second half. With a 7-2 record in the second half of the season and four consecutive series wins, they are on the verge of breaking into the top half of the standings.
KT won 5-2 against the NC Dinos in the regular season of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League at NC Park in Changwon on April 30. With the win, KT completed the series sweep and improved to 44 wins, 43 losses, and 2 draws. NC is now 43-42-1. Both teams lost points, but remained in the standings. NC has a winning percentage of .5058 and KT has a .5057, which is less than a point apart.
KT went 7-2 in the second half, surpassing the 5-percent winning percentage mark and is now within striking distance of fourth place and possibly even third. Third-place Doosan lost its fifth straight game to fall to 44 points, 41 losses and one draw. Their lead is now down to one game.
KT started Kim Min-hyuk (right fielder), Alford (left fielder), Moon Sang-chul (designated hitter), Park Byung-ho (first baseman), Jang Jang-woo (catcher), Hwang Jae-gyun (third baseman), Oh Yoon-seok (second baseman), Jeong Jae-dae (center fielder), and Jang Jun-won (shortstop). The starting pitcher was Wes Benjamin.
For NC, Son Asub (designated hitter), Park Min-woo (second base), Park Gun-woo (right field), Jason Martin (left field), Yoon Hyung-joon (first base), Kim Sung-wook (center field), Seo Ho-cheol (third base), Park Se-hyuk (catcher), and Kim Joo-won (shortstop) were in the starting lineup. The starting pitcher was Shin Min-hyuk.
NC scored the first run. They had runners on first and third after Martin and Yoon Hyung-jun singled, but Kim Sung-wook hit an infield single to score one run. However, it wasn’t enough for them.
Eventually, KT turned the game around. In the top of the third inning, Jang Jun-won singled to left field. He then took a 126-kilometer changeup from Shin Min-hyuk for a towering two-run shot. His third home run of the season.
In the fourth inning, Oh Yoon-seok singled to left with one out. Jang Jun-won singled to put runners on second and third, and Kim Min-hyuk hit an infield single to shortstop to load the bases. It was 3-1. In the sixth inning, Oh Yoon-seok singled to right and Choi Byeong-dae grounded out to shortstop to put runners on second and third. He stole second and Jang Jun-won walked to load the bases.
Then, Kim Min-hyuk came up to bat in a strange situation. In a two-pitch, two-strike at-bat, the fifth pitch went out of bounds. The runner at first base, Jang Jun-won, was caught in a rundown. The platoon didn’t move. Eventually, both runners had to move. KT took advantage of the slack in NC’s play, and Bae Joo-dae sprinted home to score. It was 4-1. 메이저놀이터
NC also had a chance in the bottom of the sixth inning when Park Min-woo hit an infield single on a deflected pitch. Park walked to load the bases, but Jason Martin followed with a timely double to the top of the left-center field fence to cut the deficit to 4-2.
In the top of the seventh, however, KT put runners on first and second with a leadoff walk by Alford and a sacrifice bunt by Moon Sang-cheol. Park Byung-ho followed with an RBI single to right to make it 5-2.
KT began to solidify its lead. Starter Wes Benjamin bounced back with six innings of four-hit ball, one walk, five strikeouts and two runs. Afterward, Son Dong-hyun