By eliminating a pesky opponent with a tidy performance Friday night, the LG Twins kept alive their bid for a second straight South Korean baseball championship. The Twins beat the KT Wiz 4-1 in Game 5 of the best-of-five first round in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. They will now meet No. 2 seed Samsung Lions in the second round, also best of five, beginning Sunday. LG Twins players celebrate their 4-1 win over the KT Wiz in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) LG Twins players celebrate their 4-1 win over the KT Wiz in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) The Twins are trying to become the first team in eight years to repeat as Korean Series champions and also the fourth team to win a Korean Series title as No. 3 seed. "I think we were just a bit luckier than KT. I am really impressed with the way our guys competed," Twins manager Youm Kyoung-youb said. "We've just passed our first test. My goal is to win the Korean Series again." Game 5 starter Im Chan-kyu was voted the series MVP after holding the Wiz to two runs in 11 1/3 innings and striking out eight. But Youm said reliever Elieser Hernandez was the MVP in his heart, after the Venezuelan right-hander appeared in all five games and worked 7 1/3 shutout innings. LG Twins players celebrate their 4-1 win over the KT Wiz in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) LG Twins players celebrate their 4-1 win over the KT Wiz in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) Among position players, Shin Min-jae led the team with seven hits and five steals, a record for a first round. Austin Dean drove in a team-high six runs, includ ing two on Friday. There could be some fireworks in the next series between the Twins and the Lions, with both clubs dealing with a shortage of viable bullpen arms but loaded with capable bats. "If they put up big numbers on the board, we'll try to match them," Youm said. "We have six guys who can go deep at any time. I think we can definitely match Samsung on offense." Hernandez was a starter during the regular season before being asked to handle multiple innings out of the bullpen this month. Youm said Hernandez will likely serve as the new closer in the next series, with the former closer, You Young-chan, taking up the setup role. LG Twins manager Youm Kyoung-youb celebrates his team's 4-1 win over the KT Wiz in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) LG Twins manager Youm Kyoung-youb celebrates his team's 4-1 win over the KT Wiz in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at J amsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) The losing manager, Lee Kang-chul, thanked his players for their hard work, after the Wiz's surprising run came to an end. They squeezed into the postseason with a six-game winning streak. First, they had to win their final three regular-season games. And that set up an unprecedented, fifth-place tiebreaker game against the SSG Landers. They won that game 4-3 thanks to a three-run homer by Mel Rojas Jr. in the bottom of the eighth inning. Then the Wiz became the first No. 5 seed to capture the wild card round, after beating fourth-seed Doosan Bears 4-0 and 1-0 in back-to-back games. They stretched their winning streak with a 3-2 win over the Twins to open the first round. They dropped the next two games but staved off elimination with a 6-5 victory in 11 innings in Game 4. KT Wiz players acknowledge their fans after a 4-1 loss to the LG Twins in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) KT Wiz players acknowledge their fans after a 4-1 loss to the LG Twins in Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Yonhap) But that would be the last win for the Wiz this year, as they managed just three singles against Twins starter Im, and nothing against relievers Son Ju-young and Hernandez. "We've been on the brink the whole time, and I think luck was on LG's side at the end," Lee said. "I think we went deeper than I'd expected, thanks to our pitching. This sets us up nicely for the new season." The Twins stole 12 bases in this series against Wiz catcher Jang Sung-woo, including three Friday. Jang's throws were often short and off target, but Lee refused to single out the veteran backstop. "He must have been exhausted," Lee said. "But who could blame him? He played seven straight postseason games." Source: Yonhap News Agency
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