'The Grand Slam by No. 9 Kim Taegun Like a Thunderbolt' KIA One Win Away from 12th Championship

In the top of the 3rd inning, as KIA Tigers' ninth batter Kim Tae-gun's hit sailed inside the left pole, the tension that had been tightly maintained throughout Game 4 of the Korean Series suddenly snapped. The ninth batter's grand slam propelled KIA to a commanding 7-0 lead. Although it was early in the game, KIA's win probability soared to 93.9%. Considering that the pitcher on the mound for KIA was Nail, a 7-run deficit looked daunting for the Samsung Lions. Moreover, Samsung's starter Won Tae-in, who had pitched a closely contested game against Nail in Game 1 on the 21st, showed a different performance and had already left the mound.

On the 26th, at Daegu Samsung Lions Park, KIA defeated Samsung 9-2 in Game 4 of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO Postseason Korean Series, powered by Kim Tae-gun's decisive grand slam. KIA is now just one win away from their twelfth championship. Game 5 of the Korean Series will be held on the 28th at KIA's home, Gwangju Kia Champions Field, after a day off.

KIA's Kim Tae-gun is cheering after hitting a grand slam in the top of the 3rd inning, extending the lead to 7-0.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

Before the rain suspension was declared on the 21st, Nail and Won Tae-in had led Game 1 of the Korean Series as a tight pitching duel. Five days later, they faced off again as starting pitchers. Nail once again delivered a strong performance, but Won Tae-in did not.

KIA troubled Won Tae-in from the first inning. Leadoff hitter Park Chan-ho reached base with a hard-hit single to second base, followed by Kim Sun-bin hitting a double that struck the upper part of the center-right fence after a 10-pitch full count battle. KIA managed to score only one run on Na Sung-bum's infield grounder with runners on second and third and no outs. However, they persistently pressured Won Tae-in, forcing him to throw 32 pitches in the first inning alone.

In the top of the 2nd inning, KIA again created opportunities as leadoff hitter Lee Chang-jin reached base with a hit. However, Byun Woo-hyuk and Kim Tae-gun struck out consecutively, and Park Chan-ho was out on a line drive to the pitcher, failing to capitalize on the chance. Still, two batters went to full counts, and by the end of the 2nd inning, Won Tae-in's pitch count had risen to 54.

Despite multiple chances in the 1st and 2nd innings, KIA's offense managed only one run. However, they exploded in the 3rd inning, shaking off the earlier frustrations. Leadoff hitter Kim Sun-bin reached base with a hit that slipped past the left fielder, and Kim Do-young walked. With no outs and runners on first and second, Na Sung-bum and Socrates hit consecutive singles, extending KIA's lead to 3-0 and maintaining the no-out, first and second base situation. Choi Won-jun executed a sacrifice bunt, and Lee Chang-jin drew a walk, creating a bases-loaded, one-out situation. Samsung's starter Won Tae-in was then taken off the mound.

Won Tae-in threw 78 pitches before leaving the mound, more than the 66 pitches he threw in the scoreless 5 innings of Game 1. He finished with 2.1 innings pitched, allowing 6 hits, 6 runs (all earned), 3 walks, and 2 strikeouts.

Facing a potential big inning, Samsung's second pitcher Song Eun-beom took the mound and got the first batter Byun Woo-hyuk to pop out foul to the catcher, recording two outs. As Samsung fans breathed a sigh of relief and hoped to escape the inning without further damage, Kim Tae-gun struck with a thunderous home run.

Kim Tae-gun took a ball on Song Eun-beom's first pitch and powerfully swung at the second pitch, a 132 km/h slider. Watching the ball in the batter's box, the ball flew precariously but just cleared the fence inside the yellow pole. The score quickly widened from 3-0 to 7-0.

Samsung scored their first runs in the bottom of the 4th inning. With two outs and runners on first and second, Diaz's hit and Park Byung-ho's hit-by-pitch created the opportunity, and Kim Young-woong delivered an RBI single. In the bottom of the 5th, leadoff hitter Lee Jae-hyun hit a solo home run, narrowing the gap to 2-7.

KIA's Socrates is rounding the bases after hitting a two-run home run in the top of the 6th inning to seal the victory.
Photo by Yonhap News

However, KIA crushed Samsung's momentum in the top of the 6th with Socrates' two-run homer. With one out and a runner on first after Na Sung-bum's hit, Socrates connected on the third pitch, a 135 km/h flat fastball from Samsung's third pitcher Choi Chae-heung, sending the ball over the right field fence. Samsung could not mount any further comeback, and the game ended as is.

Nail earned the win with a strong outing of 5.2 innings, allowing 6 hits, 2 runs (2 earned), 1 walk, and striking out 7. Following Nail, Lee Jun-young recorded one out to finish the 6th inning.

In the 7th inning, Jang Hyun-sik took the mound, followed by Gwak Do-gyu in the 8th, and Hwang Dong-ha in the 9th, all shutting down Samsung's offense without allowing any runs.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.