Samsung Lions manager Park Jin-man’s winning move worked. Samsung, which has changed to “young blood,” has continued its winning streak after eight consecutive losses. It secured the No. 1 Kia Tigers, paving the way for a rebound.
Samsung defeated KIA 7-3 at an away game of the 2024 KBO League held at KIA Champions Field in Gwangju on Tuesday. After having been bogged down for eight consecutive years until Sunday’s match against KIA in Gwangju, Samsung escaped from consecutive losses due to Kim Heon-gon’s finishing hit in the ninth inning of the previous day (sixth) and continued its winning streak by displaying hindsight in the second half of the game on the next day (seventh). Samsung concluded its three consecutive away games in Gwangju with a winning series.
During the eight-game losing streak, he had to agonize a lot. The starting lineup collapsed early on, and the batters did not explode. In the end, coach Park Jin-man made a decision. Veteran infielder Oh Jae-il (batting average of 0.167) who had been struggling with poor batting performance was removed from the first division, and Kang Min-ho, his main catcher, was also excluded from the starting lineup.
He then introduced an unconventional lineup filled with youthful energy. Outfielder Kim Jae-hyuk, who had been praised since the spring camp, catcher Lee Byung-hun, and rookie infielder Kim Ho-jin made the starting lineup. He also introduced an unconventional card that introduced catcher Kim Jae-sung as the “first baseman” for the first time in a long time. In the game on the next day (July 7), second baseman Kim Jae-sang and third baseman Gong Min-gyu were added to make changes.
The result was a huge success. Samsung, which had remained at the bottom of the league with a batting average of 0.180 during its losing streak, displayed robust hitting of 11 hits in the game on Tuesday, and eight hits on Tuesday. It garnered seven points for two consecutive days, displaying high purity in hitting performance.
Young players showed off their performance. Kim Jae-hyuk had two hits and an RBI, and Ahn Joo-hyung had two hits on Wednesday. On Wednesday, Kim Jae-hyuk had two RBIs and one run, including a sacrifice fly, and Gong Min-gyu had a wedge home run. Kim Jae-seong also performed very well, scoring two hits and one run. In particular, Kim Jae-hyuk, who had high expectations since the spring camp, pulled off a timely hit, and led his team to victory by shooting a sacrifice fly in the final on Tuesday.
In the second half of 2022, Park seemed to be watching the acting days of Park Jin-man. Acting Samsung manager Park Jin-man, who replaced Huh Sam-young at the time, hinted at “infinite competition,” giving opportunities to young fielders. As a result, Samsung had a winning percentage of 0.560 (28 wins and 22 losses) under Park, raising expectations for the new season. Contrary to expectations for his stellar performance in 2023, Park is taking the lead quickly in this year’s consecutive losses, reversing the mood.
BY: 스포츠토토