The KIA Tigers and LG Twins opened their series Saturday in Gwangju, with the Tigers hosting Game 1. The matchup features the last three KBO champions and is headlined by two leading MVP candidates: Austin Dean of the Twins and Do-yeong Kim of the Tigers.
After a scoreless first inning, the Twins struck first with two outs in the top of the second against Tigers starter James Naile. Chan-eui Song delivered a solo home run over the left-field fence to give LG a 1-0 lead.
The Tigers answered in the bottom of the second when Harold Castro tied the game with a solo home run of his own.
In the bottom of the fourth, with the game tied 1-1, a potential 2026 KBO MVP stepped to the plate. Do-yeong Kim launched a towering 410-foot home run to left field to give the Tigers a 2-1 lead. It was his second career postseason home run.
Holding a slim 2-1 lead, Naile allowed the first two batters to reach base in the sixth inning. With the Twins threatening, he recorded a strikeout and got Bo-gyeong Moon to ground into an inning-ending double play.
One of the KBO’s best pitchers throughout the season, Naile delivered in Game 1. He went seven strong innings, allowing four hits and one run while striking out six against the defending KBO champions.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Tigers extended their lead. With runners on the corners and no outs, Kim hit a sacrifice fly to the warning track to make it 3-1.
Still trailing 3-1 in the top of the eighth, the Twins put runners on first and second before Sang-hyun Jeon induced a fly ball that died near the edge of the warning track, allowing the Tigers to escape the jam.
In the bottom of the eighth, with a runner on base and two outs, the Twins elected to pitch to Kim, a decision that backfired. Kim delivered his second 410-foot blast of the game, sending the ball out at 105 mph to extend the Tigers’ lead to 5-1. It was the first multihomer game of Kim’s postseason career.
The Twins put a runner on base with a double in the ninth, but Jeon retired the next two batters to close out a 5-1 Tigers victory.
The Tigers continued their dominance over the Twins. Dating to the regular season, KIA has defeated LG in eight consecutive games. For the second straight meeting between the teams, Kim’s power proved to be the difference.
The Twins must now win three of the next four games to keep their title defense alive.
In Game 2 on Sunday, the Tigers will send ace Adam Oller to the mound. Chan-kyu Im will start for the Twins, who will be looking for a bounce-back performance from the right-hander. In his final four starts of the regular season, Im posted an 8.10 ERA over 16 2/3 innings and allowed 23 hits.
Elsewhere in the KBO
The SSG Landers announced they have re-signed Pedro Ávila to a contract extension. The deal guarantees him a contract for 2027 and includes an option for 2028.
Ávila made his KBO debut July 16 and quickly established himself as one of the league’s top pitchers. In 14 starts, he posted a 1.44 ERA over 93 2/3 innings, recorded 93 strikeouts and threw two complete games, including a shutout.
Despite missing the postseason, the Landers climbed from ninth place to sixth after the All-Star break, with Ávila’s dominance on the mound playing a major role. SSG posted a KBO-best 34-22-2 record after the break.
With their ace back, the Landers will look to return to the postseason in 2027
