While tense negotiations ensue in the MLB, games continue to accumulate in the KBO, along with injuries. Another hitter vacated the KT Wiz lineup with their star young slugger nicknamed “Korean Papi” landing on the injured list: 

 

Hopefully Kang only misses the three weeks alluded to in the tweet, but his power will need to be assessed once he returns to game action. In Samsung, Ben Lively took the mound but only lasted one batter:

 

Import players often determine how teams finish in the standings and Samsung’s struggling with only five wins through their first 16 contests. Also struggling, the KT Wiz bullpen blew another late lead costing Odrisamer Despaigne his second win and resulting in the team’s ninth loss of the season. Here’s the highlights from Friday’s slate in the KB). 

Starting Pitcher Spotlight

En route to his third win, Hyun-jong Yang made waves on Twitter due to his appearance on the mound:

 

Yang also held the attention of the SK Wyverns hitters, limiting them to four hits, one run (zero earned) and a walk with five strikeouts over six innings spanning 95 pitches. Yang’s made four starts in 2020 with three wins, three quality starts and a 3.43 ERA with a 1.14 WHIP through 21 innings of work. Teammate Kyung-chan Moon notched his fourth save allowing a hit in a scoreless ninth. 

Odrisamer Despaigne tossed seven innings giving up six hits, two runs (one earned) and striking out three in a no-decision. Despaigne lowered his ERA to 2.25 on the year with a tidy 21:2 K:BB over 24 innings with a 0.96 WHIP. Although he’s only 1-0, focus on Despaigne’s three quality outings in four turns for the Wiz. 

Hanwha’s Warwick Saupold faced a hot NC Dinos lineup and responded with his second win. Saupold logged six innings yielding six hits, three earned runs and three walks with four strikeouts. NC made him work but Saupold moved to 2-1 on the year and recorded his fourth quality start. Through 28 innings, Saupold owns a 2.25 ERA and 0.96 WHIP. 

Hitter Highlights

Doosan Bears

Heading to Samsung could be timely for the Doosan offense. On Friday, they exploded for 12 runs breaking the slate and their best hitter shined:

Jose Miguel Fernandez finished 3-for-4 with a run, a double, his third home run, six RBI and a walk raising his average to .476 (first in the KBO. He also leads the league in runs (15) and hits (30). His teammates also chipped in:

 

  • Jae-ho Kim (SS) - Went 2-for-3 with two runs.

  • Soo-bin Jung (OF) - Tallied two hits in four at-bats with two runs and an RBI.

  • Ji-hyeok Ryu (SS) - Racked up four hits with two runs and an RBI in five at-bats batting ninth in the lineup. 

Samsung Lions

It’s been a slow start for Hak-Ju Lee of the Lions but he’s on the board with his first home run of 2020: 

Samsung plated seven runs on 12 hits and could be worthy DFS targets if this series continues to feature runs. 

  • Sang-su Kim (2B) - Finished 2-for-4 with a run, double and an RBI. 

  • Ja-wook Ku (OF)- Stayed hot at the dish with two more hits, a run, RBI and a walk in four plate appearances. 

Kiwoom Heroes

  • Keon-chang Seo (2B) - Extended his personal hit streak to 11 games going 1-for-3 with two runs and two walks. 

  • Dong-won Park (DH) - Seeing a catcher appear as a designated hitter adds to Park’s appeal in DFS. Park went 2-for-4 with three runs, a double, his fourth home run, two RBI and walked in a strong performance. He’s slashing a robust .340/.380/.702 through 51 plate appearances. 

  • Gyu-min Kim (OF) - Went 2-for-4 with a run, double and an RBI. 

Lotte Giants

  • Byung-hun Min (DH) - Recorded two hits in five at-bats with two runs, a double and three RBI. 

  • Ah-seop Son (OF) - On base machine Son reached in all five plate appearances going 3-for-3 with two walks, scored two runs, drove in one and stole his first base of the season. Son took over the KBO lead in OBP (.530) after this contest. 

  • Jun-woo Jeon (OF) - Went 2-for-5 with a run and a double. 

  • Dae-Ho Lee (1B) - Drove in three runs while going 1-for-3 with a walk. 

Kia Tigers

  • Chan-ho Park (SS) - Moved his hit streak to seven games going 2-for-5 with a run and stole his third base of the season. He’s hitting .367 (11-for-30) his last seven. 

Hanwha Eagles

  • Moon-ho Kim (1B) - Launched two home runs in four at-bats, his first two of 2020 with three RBI. He’s hit safely in all six games he’s appeared in for Hanwha with five RBI over his last four. 

  • Si-hwan Noh (SS) - Went 2-for-4 with a double, his second home run and two RBI. 

NC Dinos 

  • Suk-min Park (3B) - Perhaps snapping out of his slump, Park hit his fourth home run, scored two runs, drove in one and walked in four plate appearances. 

  • Jin-hyuk No (SS) - Finished 2-for-4 with a run and recorded multiple hits in three of his last four games. 

LG Twins

  • Eun-sung Chae (OF) - Blasted his third home run among two hits in four at-bats. He’s homered in back-to-back contests and racked up six RBI his last four. 

  • Roberto Ramos (1B) - Went 1-for-4 with an RBI. 

KT Wiz

  • Woo-jun Sim (SS) - Extended his hit streak to seven on his only hit in five at-bats. Sim also swiped his sixth base of the year and stole a base in three straight games. 

  • Yong-ho Jo (OF) - Tallied three hits in five at-bats with a run and an RBI. Also on a seven game hit streak with multiple hit games in each of his last four. 

  • Mel Rojas Jr. (OF) - Racked up two hits with a run scored. 

  • Kyung-soo Park (2B) - Knocked in at least a run for the fourth consecutive contest going 2-for-3 with a run, double, three RBI and a walk. 

With each team on tap to play on Saturday, be sure to remain with Fantasy Alarm to remain ahead of the competition. Also check out all the great work on eSports, MMA and NASCAR this weekend. 

 

Statistical Credits

myKBOstats.com

Eng.koreabaseball.com