Wiz defeat Dinos to stave off elimination in KBO postseason

Bae Jung-dae of the KT Wiz celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against the NC Dinos during Game 3 of the second round in the Korea Baseball Organization postseason at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, Thursday. Yonhap

The KT Wiz shut down the NC Dinos 3-0 on the road Thursday to stay alive in their Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) postseason series, behind an outstanding start by Ko Young-pyo and two home runs from a lineup that woke up just in time.

Bae Jung-dae smacked a two-run home run in the second inning, and Moon Sang-chul added a solo shot in the seventh to back Ko at Changwon NC Park in the southeastern town of Changwon, as the Wiz cut their deficit of two games to one in the best-of-five second round.

The loss snapped the Dinos' six-game winning streak this postseason, and their nine-game run dating to their previous postseason appearance in 2020.

The best-of-five showdown will stay in Changwon for Game 4 at 6:30 p.m. Friday.

In KBO postseason history, only two clubs have rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win the second round: 1996 Hyundai Unicorns and 2009 SK Wyverns.

The winner of this series will advance to the Korean Series, which begins Tuesday in Seoul. The LG Twins, after posting the best record in the regular season, are waiting there, after earning a bye to the championship round. (Yonhap)