In the ever evolving KBO, things can change quickly. Prior to game action on Saturday, Kiwoom made a roster move placing their import hitter on waivers:

 

Motter never seemed comfortable in the KBO, he openly complained about how South Korea treated his wife during her quarantine entering the country and his struggles to assimilate or produce led to this result. It’s not easy to transition to a new culture and a fellow unnamed import saw the writing on the wall:

 

Also affecting Kiwoom, leadoff hitter Keon-chang Seo sat out Saturday’s contest with inflammation in his elbow prompting Jung-hoo Lee to hit first and bringing Woong-bin Kim into the third spot in the lineup. Even better news emerged during Kiwoom’s 14 run outburst including this performance by a hitter entering the game with a .200/.267/.200 slash line:

 

Hye-sung Kim tripled in his last at-bat accomplishing the feat of hitting for the cycle and finished 4-for-5 scoring three runs and driving in four. Doosan rallied late to tie the score in the ninth inning then walked off the win over Lotte in the bottom of the 11th:

 

Kyoung-min Hur drove in two runs including the game winner in the 11th with two outs and two runners on. Doosan’s won two in a row but the hottest team in the league right now, Samsung won its fourth straight including the first two in a series against the first place NC Dinos. Check out the rest of the game action in today’s Round Up. 

Starting Pitcher Spotlight

Kia’s Min-woo Lee recorded his third win working seven innings giving up three hits, two runs (one earned) and two walks with eight strikeouts versus the LG Twins. Lee lowered his ERA to 3.23 and WHIP to 1.11 as a result of this outing. 

David Buchanon fired seven innings allowing three hits, one earned run and two walks while striking out three for his third win helping Samsung defeat the NC Dinos. This marks Buchanon’s second win and quality start in a row. He’s now 3-2 on the year with a 4.50 ERA and 1.19 WHIP after a rough start to his season. 

Won-tae Choi notched his first win of 2020 logging six innings yielding five hits and two earned runs with five strikeouts for Kiwoom. Choi lowered his ERA to 3.67 through 27 innings spanning five starts. 

Hitter Highlights

Kiwoom Heroes

Scored a season high 14 runs on 16 hits in a 14-3 win over the KT Wiz. As referenced above, the cycle by Hye-sung Kim highlighted the attack but here’s how his teammates also fared:

  • Ha-seong Kim (SS) - Went 1-for-4 with two runs, an RBI and walked twice. 

  • Woong-bin Kim (DH) - Racked up three hits in six at-bats scoring two runs and driving in one during his first start of the season. 

  • Dong-won Park (C) - Launched his sixth home run of the year among his three hits driving in four runs and walked once. Park’s recorded three straight games with multiple RBI totalling eight in them going seven for his last 11 with a double and two home runs. 

Kia Tigers

Noting bat flips rule the flare department in the KBO, this one by Chan-ho Park represents his first home run of the year: 

 

Kia won its game versus the LG Twins scoring 10 runs on 14 hits. Park finished with three RBI among his five at-bats. Other hitters of note from Kia include:

  • Ji-wan Na (OF) - Finished 4-for-4 with two runs, a double and an RBI. 

  • Min-sang Yoo (1B) - Racked up three hits, scored two runs, doubled and drove in two over five at-bats. 

  • Seung-taek Han (C) - Recorded a 3-for-3 day with a run, double, RBI and walked in four plate appearances. 

KT Wiz

  • Sang-cheol Moon (1B) - Hit his first home run during a 2-for-3 game with an RBI. 

  • Sung-woo Jang (C) - Went 2-for-2 with his third home run driving in two. He’s registered 18 RBI in 21 games this year for the Wiz. 

LG Twins

  • Eun-sung Chae (OF) - Scored a run, doubled and drove in a run during three at-bats. 

  • Sung-woo Lee (C) - Cracked his second home driving in three in four at-bats. 

Samsung Lions

  • Hak-Ju Lee (SS) - Went 1-for-3 with two runs and a walk. 

  • Won-seok Lee (1B) - Blasted his third home run driving in one and walked in four plate appearances. 

  • Tyler Saladino (1B) - Tallied three hits in four at-bats including a double, scored once, drove in three and moved his modest hit streak to four games. 

  • Min-ho Kang (C) - A double dong day for Kang, his third and fourth of the season, both solo shots. 

SK Wyverns

  • Jeong Choi (3B) - Rapped a double in three at-bats, scored two runs, drove in two runs and walked in four plate appearances. Redemption week continues for Choi with seven hits in 15 at-bats (.467) including three doubles, one home run, seven RBI and he’s walked seven times. 

  • Jamie Romak (1B) - Finished 1-for-4 with a run, double and walked . 

  • Heung-ryun Lee (C) - Racked up three hits in four at-bats along with his first home run driving in two. 

Hanwha Eagles

  • Sung-yeol Lee (1B) - Represented all of his team’s offense hitting a three-run home run, his second home run of 2020. 

Doosan Bears

  • Jose Miguel Fernandez (DH) - Moved one step closer to leading the KBO in most hitting categories going 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk. He’s one RBI behind Preston Tucker for the league lead but Fernandez leads the KBO in average (.472), runs (20), hits (42) and on-base percentage (.505). 

  • Joo-hwan Choi (2B) - Launched his fifth home run among two hits in four at-bats driving in two and also walked. 

Lotte Giants

  • Jun-woo Jeon (OF) - Recorded three hits in four at-bats scoring two runs, doubled, drove in one and walked. 

  • Chi-hong An (2B) - Moved to third in the lineup going 3-for-5 with two RBI. He’s hit safely in seven of his last eight games. 

Sunday’s slate provides a bevy of aces with NC sending Chang-mo Koo (3-0, 0.62 ERA) to the mound trying to snap a two-game losing skid. Samsung counters with Chae-heung Choi (3-0, 1.88 ERA) riding a four game win streak. A battle of imports in Kia with Drew Gagnon going for the home team against Tyler Wilson of the LG Twins. Ditto in Doosan with the Bears matching up Chris Flexen versus Dan Straily of the Lotte Giants. 

With more action on tap across the fantasy landscape, be sure to stay with Fantasy Alarm to remain ahead of the competition. Sean Mitchell continues to produce eSports lines, Mike Alexander covers the latest MMA bouts and both Dan Malin along with our award winning Matt Selz prepare you for the NASCAR race in Bristol. 

 

Statistical Credits

Eng.koreabaseball.com

myKBOstats.co