KT, the 10th team in the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) that joined the first team league in 2015, and NC, the 9th team that joined the first team in 2013, will face off in an unforgiving battle for a ticket to the Korean Series (KS). The two youngest teams in the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) will compete in a best-of-five playoff (PO) starting with Game 1 at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on April 30. This is the first time the two teams have met in the postseason (PS). NC, which has been in the PS since 2014, the year after joining the first team, won its first KS title in 2020. KT, which was invited to the Fall Feast for the first time in 2020, also became the 2021 champion. KT, which finished second in the regular season this year, leads the head-to-head record against the fourth-ranked NC with 10 wins and 6 losses.
Strongest starting KT "On Our Way"
KT Benjamin
After completing the 10-day regular season, KT has had 19 days to recover and prepare for the PO with a series of blue-black games. KT has the strongest starting pitching staff. Left-handed pitcher Benjamin, who won 15 games in the regular season, Cuevas, who went undefeated in 12 games, and side-arm pitcher Ko Young-pyo (12 wins) are all worthy of being called aces.
Benjamin, who was pulled after two innings in the regular season finale with elbow pain, started against the Blue and White on Sept. 26 and threw a fastball up to 147 kilometers per hour, unchanged from the regular season. Long reliever Uhm Sang-baek, who hasn't pitched since Aug. 22 due to a broken rib, is also available for the PO. The presence of bullpen pitcher Park Young-hyun, who showed his best stuff at the Hangzhou Asian Games, is also a plus.
The batting lineup has suffered several injuries. Center fielder Kang Baek-ho tore a muscle in his right side while batting against Cheongbaeik on the 26th. "It will be difficult for him to play in the postseason," said KT manager Lee Kang-cheol. Kim Min-hyuk, who injured his thigh muscle, is still in pain and is unlikely to play normally.
NC on a 4-game PS winning streak without a pedi
NC will look to continue their recent upswing. They closed out the Wild Card decider against Doosan in one game and won three straight against SSG in the semifinals. This was all done without "Ace" Pedi, who won the triple crown of wins (20), ERA (2.00), and strikeouts (209), and was sidelined with a season-ending forearm injury. Peddy is expected to start Game 1 of the 30-day PO unless there are major changes.
NC has a strong bullpen. Left-hander Kim Young-kyu, who looks more settled after traveling to the Hangzhou Asian Games, hasn't allowed a run in all three games of the semifinals. Ryu Jin-wook, a right-handed pitcher, has been dominating batters with his hard fastball. It's also encouraging to see that closer Lee Yong-chan has regained his form, preserving a one-run win in Game 3 of the Quarterfinals.
He's hitting well, too. Park Min-woo set the table with a .400 batting average in Game 3 of the Quarterfinals, while Park Gun-woo was the cleanup hitter with a .462 batting average. NC led the team in errors in the regular season (130), but didn't commit a single one in the Semi-Pros. 토토사이트
