Samsung Lions players celebrate after defeating the LG Twins 9-2 to move into first place in a KBO game at Daegu Samsung Lions Park on July 7.NEWS1
The Samsung Lions took back sole possession of first place in the KBO on Tuesday after beating the LG Twins 9-2 in Daegu.
Samsung’s win at Daegu Samsung Lions Park dropped LG to second place and lifted the Lions to the top of the standings for the first time since May 29 — a gap of 39 days. The two teams are tied in the loss column, but Samsung’s .617 winning percentage narrowly edges out LG’s .614.
The Lions trailed behind their opponent until the fifth inning, when they made a dramatic comeback. Down 0-2, Kim Ji-chan opened the inning with a single to left, andKim Hyeon-joon reached on a hit-by-pitch, putting runners on first and second with one out. Koo Ja-wook then drove in a run with a single to right to shift the momentum. Choi Hyoung-woo followed with a double to left, bringing Kim Hyeon-joon home from second to tie the game.
Samsung kept pressing. With runners on second and third and two out, Ryu Ji-hyuk added an RBI infield single, and a throwing error by second baseman Shin Min-jae on the play allowed Choi to score as well.
In the seventh, leadoff batter Koo singled to left and advanced to second on a wild pitch before Choi drove him in with a single to right-center. With runners on first and second and two out, Kim Young-woong added an RBI single to center. Leading 6-2 in the eighth, Samsung tacked on three more runs on a Kim Sung-yoon RBI hit and a two-run home run from Lewin Díaz, putting the game out of reach.
Choi drove in two runs in the game, becoming the first player in KBO history to reach 1,800 career RBIs. Samsung starter Ariel Jurado worked six innings. He allowed five hits, including a home run, and four walks while giving up two runs, earning his fifth win of the season. LG starter Anders Tolhurst struggled, giving up four runs — with three earned — on six hits and four walks over five innings, taking his seventh loss of the season against eight wins.
Samsung Lions' Choi Hyoung-woo runs toward first base in a KBO game against the LG Twins at Daegu Samsung Lions Park on July 7.NEWS1
Elsewhere in the KBO, the SSG Landers snapped a nine-game losing streak with a 4-2 road win over the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Stadium in Songpa District, southern Seoul, powered by a strong outing from rookie Kim Min-jun.
Kim Min-jun, who made his top-tier debut in June, allowed just four hits and one walk over six innings while striking out six. He didn’t allow a run, recording his first career quality start — six innings or more with three earned runs or fewer.
The Lotte Giants routed the KIA Tigers 10-2 in Busan; the KT Wiz beat the Kiwoom Heroes 3-0 in Suwon, Gyeonggi; and the NC Dinos defeated the Hanwha Eagles 9-6 in Daejeon.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
