SUWON, South Korea: Despite not hitting a single home run through five games, the top trio in the NC Dinos lineup—Son Ah-seop, Park Min-woo, and Park Kun-woo—has made a significant impact in the ongoing Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason.
According to Yonhap News Agency, these three players have been strategically hitting singles and doubles, contributing to the Dinos’ five consecutive postseason wins this month. In the latest game, the Dinos defeated the KT Wiz 9-5, marking the beginning of their best-of-five second round in the KBO postseason.
In that game, Son led the team with three hits and two runs scored. Park Min-woo notched two hits and two runs, while Park Kun-woo contributed with one hit and two runs batted in.
For the postseason, Son’s batting average is .391, Park Min-woo’s is .389, and Park Kun-woo’s is .400. They are not just postseason sensations but also had remarkable regular-season performances. Son secured the batting title with an average of .339, Park Kun-woo ranked seventh at .319, and Park Min-woo followed closely in eighth with .316.
Among active players with at least 3,000 plate appearances, Park Kun-woo holds the second-highest career batting average at .326. Son ranks third at .322, and Park Min-woo is fourth at .320.
The team’s scoring patterns further highlight the trio’s importance. The Dinos have managed to score in the first inning in each of their last three games, largely due to these players.
Son spoke about the benefits of lineup protection, where strong hitters are positioned consecutively in the batting order. Despite some sabermetricians arguing that lineup protection doesn’t significantly affect performance, Son believes otherwise.
“Pitchers have to throw strikes against me because they don’t want to walk me with those two coming up,” Son said. “That makes them prone to making mistakes, which is good for us.”
Son also noted a psychological advantage, stating, “I can relax more at the plate, knowing that I have those two guys behind me that we can all trust.”