Three games behind SSG with 10 games to go, and their starting shortstop Park Chan-ho is out again. KIA is sinking deeper and deeper into despair.
KIA has been playing a four-game series against KT since the 3rd. Until the 4th, they were 2-1 in three games. In the second game of the doubleheader on the 4th, the bats didn’t come alive despite Mario Sanchez’s comeback pitch and Kim Do-young’s reliever. Still, they are fighting well against the second-place KT.
In the end, the two-game series against fifth-ranked SSG in Incheon on the 30th and 1st of last month proved fatal. The gap widened from 0.5 games to 2.5 games, and it was difficult to recover. SSG’s back-to-back double-overtime victories over KIA at the time completely revitalized their momentum. They overcame a slump in August and September to win four straight games. They swept the Incheon NC on September 3-4 and moved within one game of third-place NC and Doosan. Instead of being a fifth-place shooter, they can jump to third.
As a result, even though KIA was doing well against KT, they lost another 0.5 games and dropped to 3 games. KIA, with 66 wins, 66 losses, and two draws, also has only 10 games left. Of the 10 clubs, Mugi has the most games left, but with the end of the season approaching, the weight of a three-game difference is different than in the middle of the season.
KIA will end its long-awaited 12-game road trip with games against KT in Suwon on the 5th and LG Electronics in Jamsil on the 6th. They will then play three home games against Samsung and SSG starting on the 8th. There are also two games against NC in Gwangju, one against Lotte and Kiwoom, and one against Doosan in Jamsil. After the 12-game road trip, the only consolation is that they have seven home games out of the remaining eight.
The team went into the 12-game road trip without Na Sung-beom, Choi Hyung-woo, and Choi Won-joon, and went 5-5 in 10 games. Dropping both games against the all-important SSG was devastating, but it’s not over yet. However, the problem is that there’s another power leak.
Park Chan-ho is expected to leave again. He’s been back in the starting lineup since the start of this 12-game series and has been a presence in the offense. There’s no way he’s 100%. He might have a little bit of pain in his finger. He’s been playing with a lot of heart, but he had an accident in the second game of the doubleheader against KT on April 4.
In the top of the fifth inning with the score 2-3 and the bases loaded, KT right-hander Lee Sun-woo hit him in the arm with a 138-kilometer fastball. The diagnosis was shocking: a comminuted fracture of the left ulna. We’ll have a double-check on the morning of the 5th, but at this point, it’s pretty hopeless.
If the initial diagnosis doesn’t change, there’s a good chance he’ll be done for the season. It’s an injury that won’t heal overnight. With Na Sung-beom and Choi Hyung-woo out for the season, the center and bottom of the order have been weakened at the same time. We need a breakthrough with offense and mobility baseball, and Chan-ho Park’s absence is 메이저사이트 too big. He is a key resource. Shortstop defense is also irreplaceable. Kim Kyu-sung and Kim Do-young can play shortstop, but they can’t compare to Chan-ho’s presence.
Kia’s fall has been brutal. Once poised for a second place finish, even a leap to fifth place is turning into despair. A losing streak from here on out is crucial. They can only hope to win at least seven or eight of their remaining 10 games and hope that SSG loses back-to-back games.