Race for second place heats up at KBO

By Jung Min-ho

As the Samsung Lions widen their lead at the top of the KBO table, the race for second is heating up.

The SK Wyverns rose to No. 2 after Wednesday’s victory over the Lotte Giants but the Doosan Bears are also hot on their heels with 14 games or less each remaining.

As of Thursday morning, the Lions had a five-game lead with the Wyverns half a game ahead of the Giants and the Bears a further game back.

“As the Lions are cementing their lead, the competition for the No. 2 spot has become interesting with three teams going head to head with one another in close range,” OBS sports commentator Gu Kyung-baek said.

Based on recent records, the Wyverns seem to be favorites to clinch the runner-up place with four wins in their past five games. The team’s power-hitting with 97 home runs and a .384 slugging average, both the highest among the three, has been a driving force.

However, lingering injuries to pitchers Kim Kwang-hyun and Mario Jose Santiago may hamper their challenge. With concerns over his recent shoulder injury, Kim skipped the starter rotation against the LG Twins on Sept. 13. Santiago has also avoided pitching more than five innings since he hurt his knee in July.

With ace hitter Kang Min-ho missing due to his back injury, the Giants are struggling after yielding second place to the Wyverns, having held it since Aug. 26. They have lost any momentum, having lost their last four matches.

The Wyverns are second in the league in hits after the Twins but have the lowest number of runs among the eight KBO clubs. If they can start converting the hits they have a decent chance to take second as have a decent defense with the lowest ERA in the league.

“The Giants tend to play poorly in big matches. However, their strong offense has the potential to lead the team to more victories in the games to come,” Gu said.

Since the Bears dropped to fourth from second on Aug. 19, they have sat there for over a month with mediocre displays. However, pitcher No Kyeong-eun’s stellar performance with six strike-outs, allowing no runs in eight innings in Wednesday’s 6-0 victory against the Kia Tigers kept the Bears in the hunt. They have further reason for optimism with nine of their 13 remaining games against the bottom three teams. Meanwhile, the Giants have to face the Lions four times in 12 games, while five of the Wyverns last 14 fixtures are against their two rivals for second.

“At this point, the Bears are doing a great job. With decent starters and no injury concerns, they probably have the best chance of winning the contest,” Gu said.