KT had a beautiful July.
KT Wiz, led by coach Lee Kang-cheol, won the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League NC Dinos at Changwon NC Park on the 30th and won 5-2 in the 12th game of the season, winning the series with a series sweep. 4 consecutive winnings, 7 wins and 2 losses in the second half.
With this, KT got 44 wins, 43 losses and 2 draws, eliminating the game difference with the 4th place NC (43 wins, 42 losses, 1 draw). In addition, the game difference with the 3rd place Doosan Bears (44 wins, 41 losses, 1 draw) was reduced to one game. KT, which once had a win-loss margin of -14, now has a win-loss margin of +1. 8 wins and 2 losses in the last 10 matches.
Something unbelievable is happening. Even at the beginning of the season, KT was unable to exert any force amidst a series of injuries to key players. In April, he finished 9th with a record of 7 wins, 14 losses and 2 draws.
On May 18, the win-loss margin was -14 with 10 wins and 24 losses, and KT’s performance until May was 16 wins, 29 losses and 2 draws, the lowest in the league.
However, it started to rebound in June. As key players returned one by one and the starters also found a sense of stability, the win-loss margin was reduced to -6. 31 wins, 37 losses, 2 draws, and the ranking has also risen to 7th place.
July was KT’s month. They went 13-6 in 19 games in July. With a win rate of 0.684, it ranked third after the KIA Tigers and Doosan, which recorded 0.688.
The performance of the players was also good. Wes Benjamin, who had ups and downs, came back to life with 4 wins and an average ERA of 1.67 in 4 games in July. Kim Jae-yoon and Park Young-hyun also had a higher ERA compared to the previous months, but they helped the team whenever the team needed it without breaking away.
The line was also the same. Kang Baek-ho has yet to find his condition, but Kim Min-hyeok, who is having a career high season, made a big success, approaching 40%. Lee Ho-yeon, a transfer student, also made a big success with 0.357, and Bae Jeong-dae, who had a late start to the season due to injury, also recovered with a 0.333. Veterans such as Kim Sang-soo and Park Byung-ho also took responsibility for one shot at each critical moment.토토사이트
The NC game on the 30th also had a clean pitching balance. Starter Benjamin scored 11 wins in the season with a quality start (less than 3 earned runs in 6 innings) with 2 runs in 6 innings. It was the standard picture drawn by director Lee Kang-cheol.
In the batting line, leadoff Kim Min-hyuk hit two runs in the third inning, and Park Byeong-ho also contributed to the team’s victory with an additional RBI. Jang Jun-won, who started in place of Kim Sang-soo, also performed well with multi-hits.
KT, which struggled in the lower ranks until May, is now looking at the upper ranks. If the current trend continues, it is expected to go beyond third place and participate in the battle for the lead.
KT’s season isn’t over yet. This is the start.