Samsung Lions pitcher Hwang Dong-jae poses for photos after speaking to reporters at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, some 235 kilometers southeast of Seoul, before a Korea Baseball Organization postseason game against the LG Twins on Oct. 15, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Oct. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — Samsung Lions pitcher Hwang Dong-jae and LG Twins pitcher Im Chan-kyu are both playing for teams they cheered for growing up, living out their childhood dreams of wearing the uniforms of their favorite clubs in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO).
On Thursday in Seoul, the two will start opposite each other in a postseason elimination game, where Hwang will try to pitch the Lions to the Korean Series and Im will try to save the Twins’ season and keep their title repeat bid alive.
Hwang, 22, will make his postseason debut as the starter for Game 3 in the best-of-five series at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul. The Lions won the first two games by a combined score of 20-9 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, some 235 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and one more win will have the Lions fight for their first KBO title in 10 years.
Hwang was thrust into the postseason rotation Monday after manager Park Jin-man made a surprising decision to send scheduled Game 3 starter Lee Seung-hyun to the bullpen.
When asked before Tuesday’s game about his emotions upon learning of his starting assignment, Hwang said he didn’t feel nervous at all.
“If it had been a regular-season start, I would be thinking about trying to go at least five innings,” Hwang told reporters Tuesday before Game 2 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu. “Unless it’s the staff ace getting the nod, I think everybody in the pitching staff has to be ready to contribute. It’d be nice to eat up a lot of innings, but I just see myself as the first guy to take the ball. I can’t worry about my personal stats. I only want to focus on helping the team win.”
Hwang is a Daegu native who played ball there through high school before getting drafted by the Lions in 2019. He attended a few games at the old Daegu Citizen Baseball Stadium while the Lions reeled off four consecutive Korean Series titles from 2011 to 2014.
After starting this season in the minors, Hwang worked his way into the Lions’ staff this year in June and hasn’t looked back since.
LG Twins starter Im Chan-kyu celebrates after retiring Mel Rojas Jr. of the KT Wiz to end the top of the sixth inning during Game 5 of the first round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 11, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
“I don’t know how this all happened. I just kept grinding,” Hwang said. “I want to make the most of this opportunity to start a big game. I have to prove my worth on the mound and be consistent.”
Im has already pitched in pressure-packed situations this postseason. In Game 2 of the first round against the KT Wiz on Oct. 6, Im gave up one earned run in 5 1/3 innings in a 7-2 win that evened the series at one game apiece. Im was named the Player of the Game.
Im started the series-deciding Game 5 last Friday and held the Wiz to a run on three hits in six innings to help the Twins win 4-1. He was voted the MVP of the series thanks to a 2-0 record and a 1.59 ERA.
He had a 4.22 ERA with a 0-1 record in two regular-season starts against the Lions this year. He served up 15 hits in 10 2/3 innings but did not surrender any home runs.
Keeping the opposing hitters in the park will be crucial after Im’s teammates surrendered eight homers in the first two games of the series.
Even if Im doesn’t get it done Thursday, the 31-year-old will always have the 2023 Korean Series title to fall back on.
It was a storybook championship run for Im, who had watched the Twins fall to the Lions in the Korean Series in the most heartbreaking fashion in 2002.
The Twins lost Game 6 of that series by 10-9, allowing two homers in the bottom of the ninth — a game-tying three-run shot by Lee Seung-yuop and then a title-clinching solo shot by Ma Hae-young. It was the first walkoff home run that won a Korean Series title.
“As a childhood fan of this team, I still have vivid memories of that 2002 Korean Series against Samsung,” said Im, who will chase his third straight postseason win Thursday. “I didn’t want to go to school the next day. I want to avenge the loss from that year.”
(Yonhap)
