Incheon: The two franchises that clashed in three consecutive championship series in South Korean baseball over a decade ago will renew their rivalry starting this week. The SSG Landers will host the Samsung Lions to open the first round of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason at 2 p.m. Thursday at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon, some 30 kilometers west of Seoul. The Landers earned a bye to this round after finishing third in the regular season, while the Lions, the No. 4 seed, had to knock off the fifth-seeded NC Dinos in the wild card round earlier this week.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Landers own the home-field advantage and will host Games 1, 2 and, if necessary, 5 of this best-of-five series. The Lions will get Game 3 and, if the series goes that far, Game 4 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, about 235 kilometers southeast of the capital. This is the first postseason meeting between these two since the 2012 Korean Series, when the Landers were the SK Wyverns under differen
t ownership.
It was their third straight showdown in the Korean Series. The Wyverns swept the Lions in 2010, and then the Lions got their revenge by taking the title in five games in 2011. In 2012, the Lions prevailed in six games. Two key Wyverns players from those years, starter Kim Kwang-hyun and third baseman Choi Jeong, are still with the franchise. Park Jin-man, current manager of the Lions, was the starting shortstop for the Lions in 2010 but played for the Wyverns in the 2011 and 2012 Korean Series.
This year, the Lions won the season series 8-7-1 (wins-losses-ties). First baseman Lewin Diaz, who led the KBO with 50 home runs in the regular season, launched five homers against the Landers, the most by a Lions hitter this year. Veteran catcher Kang Min-ho batted .362/.413/.517 in 16 games against the Landers. Choi Won-tae will start Game 1 for the Lions. During the regular season, he faced the Landers five times, more than any other Lions starter, and he had a strong 3.18 ERA over 28 1/3 innings and
struck out 27. However, Choi looked shaky in the first wild card game against the NC Dinos on Monday, and manager Park placed him on the inactive list the next day, citing Choi’s mental struggles. Choi has an 11.16 ERA in 18 career postseason outings.
Left-hander Lee Seung-hyun pitched to a 2.51 ERA in three starts versus the Landers, and he could be a candidate to start Game 2. For the Landers, outfielder Guillermo Heredia had the most success at the plate against the Lions with a .378/.440/.578 line and six doubles in 12 games.
Half-Korean right-hander Mitch White will get the ball to start the first game for the Landers. He was 0-1 with a 3.92 ERA in four regular-season starts versus the Lions. He struck out 19 in 20 2/3 innings but also surrendered three home runs, the most he allowed against any opponent this year. Drew Anderson, who will likely start Game 2 for the Landers, had a 1-0 record and a 2.08 ERA in two regular-season starts against the Lions. He struck out 19 in 13 innings and walked only th
ree.
The Landers boasted the KBO’s top bullpen in the regular season, as their relievers led the league with a 3.36 ERA, 502 strikeouts and a .238 opponents’ batting average. Setup man Lee Ro-un had a career-best 1.99 ERA — a year after pitching to a 5.95 ERA — and tied for second in the KBO with 33 holds. His teammate, Noh Kyung-eun, led everyone with 35 holds and had a 2.14 ERA at age 41. Closer Jo Byeong-hyeon was electric while setting career-best marks with 30 saves and a 1.60 ERA. The Lions’ bats must wake up from their fall slumber after managing just six hits — including one in their 3-0 victory Tuesday to set the record for the lowest hit total in a KBO postseason win — and striking out 11 times in the wild card phase.