The early lead was never broken. The KT Wiz’s vaunted bullpen was on full display.
KT won its fifth game of the season against the Samsung Lions of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League 5-2 at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on Sunday, extending its winning streak to four games and securing the sweep.
At the plate, Kim Sang-soo paced the offense with a three-hit game against his hometown team, while Park Byung-ho, Jang Sung-woo, and Oh Yoon-seok added multi-hit efforts. Starter Wes Benjamin picked up his sixth win of the season with five innings of four-hit ball, walking two and striking out three.
KT chipped away at the game’s early runs, and Benjamin turned the mound over to the bullpen with his team leading 5-2. The bullpen put together a no-hit relay, much like the day before, to keep Samsung from rallying.
Like the game on the 26th, no pitcher went more than two innings. Instead, Lee opted to give four pitchers one inning each.
The first player to receive a call from the coaching staff was Kim Min-soo, who returned from injury. After being added to the first team roster on the 24th against the Suwon Kiwoom Heroes, Min-soo pitched back-to-back games against Samsung on the 26th, striking out the center field lineup of Jose Pirela, Kang Min-ho, and Jae-il for a triple. He was determined not to let the opposition catch up.
In the bottom of the seventh, third pitcher Lee Chae-ho retired Ahn Joo-hyung, Lee Jae-hyun, and Kim Hyun-joon on a strikeout, fly ball, and grounder, and in the top of the eighth, fourth pitcher Joo Kwon also retired the side without allowing a run. With Samsung unable to score any runs, the game was tilting more and more toward KT.
It was Son Dong-hyun who was responsible for the final out. After Pirela flied out to center field and Kang Min-ho grounded out to shortstop to load the bases, he struck out Oh Jae-il to end the inning. It was the first time since his professional debut that Son Dong-hyun, who has primarily served as a setup man, earned a save.
The KT mound was not at 100 percent strength until earlier this month. However, Joo and Kim Min-soo, who were sidelined with injuries, have started to return, and the pitching staff, including Park Young-hyun and Son Dong-hyun, has also been a big help.
Since the end of last month, the pieces of the puzzle have been coming together just as Lee Kang-cheol, who had been waiting for the return of the injured players, had hoped. The bullpen alone is nearing completion. Although left-hander Cho Hyun-woo, who has a bad right ankle, was removed from the first team roster on the 24th, the KT bullpen has definitely gotten some breathing room compared to the beginning of the season 메이저사이트.