(Gwangju, Jeollanam-do = Yonhap News) Reporters Jang Hyun-gu, Yoo Ji-ho, and Lee Dae-ho = 'Vamos' (Spanish for 'Let's go!') Samsung Lions have won 2 games in a row after losing 1 game, leaving them one win away from advancing to the Korean Professional Baseball Series (KS, 4 wins out of 7 games).
Samsung defeated the KIA Tigers 6-4 in Game 3 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO Postseason Playoffs (PO, 3 wins out of 5) held at Kia Champions Field in Gwangju, Jeollanam-do on the 29th, led by Park Seung-gyu and Koo Ja-wook's consecutive timely hits in the 7th inning.
Samsung, which took Game 3, the watershed moment of the series, and is ahead with 2 wins and 1 loss, only needs to add one more win to advance to KS for the first time in two years.
In a situation where the PO's record of 3 wins in 5 matches is 1 win and 1 loss, the probability that the team that won the 3rd game advanced to KS is 56.3% (9 times out of 16).
In a spectacular game that included two ties and two comebacks, Samsung defeated the KIA bullpen and earned a valuable victory.
Samsung took the lead with an exciting home run.
After two outs in the first inning, Koo Ja-wook got on base due to KIA starter Keisho Shirakawa's strike, no-out wild pitch, and Lewin Diaz pulled a high fastball toward Shirakawa's body and fired a two-run gun that went over the right fence.
This is Diaz's second home run in this series, following the two-run home run in PO's second game two days ago.
KIA, which was trailing 0-2, balanced the game in the second inning with nutritious and timely hits from the lower-ranking hitters, who were strong against Samsung starter Choi Won-tae.
With Harold Castro on base on a walk and Kim Sun-bin's hit to left-center, with two outs and runners on first and second base, Tae-goon Kim hit a clean, one-run RBI hit to left.
Immediately after, Ha Joo-seok sent a runner on second base, Kim Sun-bin, home with a single to left-center and pulled Choi Won-tae off the mound. Kim Tae-gun and Ha Joo-seok each hit two hits against Choi Won-tae during the regular season.
KIA turned the score around 3-2 with a shot from ‘superstar’ Kim Do-young in the bottom of the third inning.
Kim Do-young pushed Bae Chan-seung's outside ball at a speed of 152 km/h with force and drew a solo arch that went well over the right fence. This was the fourth cannonade this fall, including three in the semi-playoffs.
Then Samsung also responded with cannon fire.
In the top of the 5th inning, with a runner on first base, Ji-Hyuk Ryu hit a change-up that was in the middle of Shirakawa's box and hit a comeback two-run home run to make it 4-3.
The two teams started an all-out bullpen battle early on.
Samsung manager Park Jin-man made a game-winning move by appointing Won Tae-in, who had been playing a key role in the bottom of the sixth inning with a 4-3 lead, as the fourth pitcher.
However, Samsung's 'protecting baseball' was in vain as Na Seong-beom scooped up Won Tae-in's change-up and hit a superior solo shot to bring the score back to 4-4.
Samsung's disappointment was great because the third pitcher, Lee Jae-hee, showed off a surprising pitching pitch that allowed no runs in two innings.
However, Samsung took a 5-4 lead again in the top of the 7th inning with Park Seung-gyu's timely double to right-center with 2 outs and runners on second base.
Immediately after, Koo Ja-wook hit KIA's sixth pitcher, Lee Eui-ri, with a hit that went past the second baseman and rolled to right-center, widening the gap to 6-4.
After Won Tae-in pitched 1⅔ innings, Lee Seung-min, who came out with two outs in the 7th inning, pitched 1⅓ scoreless innings. After Kim Tae-hoon, who appeared on the mound in the 9th inning, got two outs, Satoshi Miyamori filled the last out count.
Kim Do-young's last chance in the 9th inning with 2 outs and runners on 1st and 2nd base was a grounder to third base on Miyamori's first pitch, and the game ended as the leading runner was caught at third base.
Ryu Ji-hyuk, who had 2 hits in 3 at-bats, 2 RBIs, and 1 run, was selected as the Daily Most Valuable Player (MVP), and Park Seung-gyu, who hit the game-winning hit, received the Potato Chip Batting of the Day Award.
The 3rd PO game also attracted 10,000 won (18,900 spectators), and fall baseball has sold out 44 consecutive games since the 1st game in KS in 2023.
KIA put 9 pitchers on the mound, tying the record for the most appearances by a pitcher in a single playoff game, but pondered over the painful loss.
KIA's second batter, Kim Ho-ryeong, recorded 4 strikeouts in 4 at-bats, tying the record for most strikeouts in a postseason game.
