Samsung Lions gamers depart the sphere after shedding to the Kia Tigers 8-3 in Recreation 2 of the Korean Collection at Kia Champions Subject in Gwangju, Oct. 23. Yonhap
The Samsung Lions face a 2-0 deficit within the Korean Collection after dropping the primary two video games in opposition to the Kia Tigers this week however it has not been an insurmountable gap.
That is the forty second taking part in of the Korean Collection, the championship spherical within the Korea Baseball Group postseason. And there have been 20 events the place a workforce constructed a 2-0 lead on this best-of-seven collection.
And twice has a workforce rallied from that deficit to win the championship — the 2007 SK Wyverns (presently SSG Landers) and the 2013 Lions.
The 2007 collection between the Wyverns and the Doosan Bears is finest remembered for the seven-run outburst by the Wyverns within the prime of the sixth inning of Recreation 3, which included 4 errors by the Bears and a bench-clearing incident. The Wyverns received that recreation 9-1 and went on to take the subsequent three video games as effectively.
Bears left-hander Lee Hei-chun threw behind the again of Kim Jae-hyun throughout that fateful sixth inning, prompting gamers from each benches to cost the sphere. It was seen as a payback try by the Bears after seven of their gamers acquired nailed by a pitch over the primary two video games of the collection. Years later, gamers from each side in that collection nonetheless level to that sixth-inning mayhem because the turning level of the collection, with the Wyverns getting credited with moving into the Bears’ head by straddling the road between gamesmanship and soiled antics.
In 2013, the Lions got here again from a 2-0 deficit after which a 3-1 deficit to beat the Bears in seven video games for his or her third consecutive Korean Collection title.
The Lions eked out a 3-2 win in Recreation 3, scoring these runs by way of an error by the Bears, a sacrifice fly and a wild pitch.
They appeared doomed after shedding the subsequent recreation 2-1, however stayed alive by taking Recreation 5 with some daring pitching utilization.
With the rating tied at 5-5 within the seventh, Rick van den Hurk, a scheduled starter for Recreation 6, got here out of the bullpen. He ended up throwing two shutout innings and was credited with the win after the Lions scored twice within the prime eighth for the 7-5 win. It was a bet by Lions supervisor Ryu Joong-il, who selected to make use of all of his finest items out there at hand to attempt to salvage their season. His counterpart, Kim Jin-wook, was criticized for being too conservative and never attempting to shut out the collection once they may.
Samsung Lions Supervisor Park Jin-man watches his workforce play the Kia Tigers throughout Recreation 2 of the Korean Collection at Kia Champions Subject in Gwangju, Oct. 23. Yonhap
The Lions began van den Hurk as deliberate for Recreation 6 simply two days later, and he solely lasted one inning and gave up a leadoff homer to Jung Soo-bin.
However a parade of eight pitchers out of the bullpen held the Bears to only one extra run over the remaining eight frames, whereas the Lions touched Bears starter Dustin Nippert for six runs in 6 2/3 innings for a 6-2 victory.
By sending in 9 pitchers, the Lions set a file for many pitchers utilized in a nine-inning Korean Collection recreation. As soon as once more, it was an aggressive bullpen utilization on Ryu’s half, as a result of the Lions had their again in opposition to the wall.
Ryu solely ended up needing 4 pitches in Recreation 7, because the Lions scored 5 runs within the backside sixth for the title-clinching, history-making 7-3 win.
The 2024 Lions may need to comply with an analogous script and attempt to be extra inventive, if not downright determined, with their bullpen utilization. Some extra offense would additionally assist, after the Lions, the regular-season leaders in residence runs, managed only one lengthy ball with a .319 slugging share within the first two video games.
One factor which will work in favor of this yr’s Lions is that they are going to be residence for the subsequent two video games after shedding the primary two. In the course of the common season, the Lions had the second-best residence file at 41-32, behind solely the Tigers. Each the 2007 Wyverns and the 2013 Lions dropped the primary two contests at residence and needed to claw their manner again in highway video games.
This collection options a few members from the 2007 and 2013 Korean Collection. Lions hitting coach Lee Jin-young was an outfielder on the 2007 Wyverns. And Choi Hyoung-woo, who batted .308 for the Lions within the 2013 collection, now performs for the Tigers. (Yonhap)
