SEOUL– The first postseason game of the year in South Korean baseball on Monday will put a spotlight on two batters coming off strong regular seasons.
On one side is the Kiwoom Heroes outfielder Lee Jung-hoo, the reigning Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) batting champion with a .360 average. At the opposite end is the Doosan Bears first baseman Yang Suk-hwan, who set new career highs with 28 home runs, 96 RBIs and a .490 slugging percentage in his first season with the club.
Lee was also the Heroes’ best hitter against the Bears during the regular season, with a .400/.477/.509 line, three doubles, nine walks and nine RBIs in 14 games.
Yang, too, put up the best numbers for his club against the Heroes. He torched them to the tune of seven home runs and 21 RBIs in 16 games, while batting .316/.361/.754.
Yang spent the previous five seasons with the LG Twins, and then got traded before the start of this season as the Bears looked to fill a hole at first base. And he responded with the most productive season of his career.
“I feel fortunate to have had such a strong season, after going through so many changes,” Yang said of switching clubs. “I am excited to be playing in the postseason in my first year with the new club.”
Yang is now one win away from taking on his former team, as the Twins, by virtue of finishing third in the regular season, earned a bye to the first round.
“Even during the regular season, I always wanted to do well against LG,” Yang said. “I want to win the wild card game right away and face LG as soon as possible.”
Lee and the Twins are back in the wild card game as the fifth seed for the second straight year. They lost to the Twins then, and Lee said things will be different this time.
“Last year, we were fighting for second place and fell to fifth late in the regular season,” Lee recalled. “This year, we battled our way into this game.”
And Lee played a major role in that stretch drive. He batted .552 with 12 RBIs in the Heroes’ final seven regular season games.
“The most important thing now is to give my best in every single game,” Lee said.
Source: Yonhap News Agency