Little movement in KBO as top three teams dig in

Jeon Ui-san of the SSG Landers rounds the bases after hitting a home run in a game against the Hanwha Eagles at Incheon SSG Landers Field in Incheon on Sunday. [YONHAP]

The KBO table remains largely unchanged this week for the first time since the season began as the SSG Landers, Kiwoom Heroes and LG Twins maintain a tight grip on the top three spots.

Despite the unchanged table, none of the three top clubs actually won their midweek series last week.

The Landers started their week off with a 6-2 loss on the road to the NC Dinos in Changwon, South Gyeongsang. After a 2-2 tie on Wednesday, the Dinos took the third game 5-4 on Thursday to secure the series win.

Both Kiwoom and LG tied their midweek series. Playing at home in Gocheok, southern Seoul, Kiwoom won their opening game against the KT Wiz 3-0, before tying the second game 5-5 and losing the Thursday game 7-1. LG, meanwhile, had their first game against the Kia Tigers postponed in Gwangju, winning the second 11-7 before losing the third 5-1 to tie the series.

All three teams rallied over the weekend.

The Landers picked up the only sweep of the week, beating the Hanwha Eagles at home in Incheon — 9-2, 4-2, 13-11.

The Heroes took on the Tigers in Gwangju, winning the opening game 10-6 and then losing the second game 5-2 before coming back to win the rubber match 10-8.

For LG, the weekend series was an especially important one as it was the return of the Jamsil derby, that sees the Twins take on stadium-mates the Doosan Bears in a subway series so acutely localized that neither team actually has to ride the subway. The Twins, who have been playing fiddle to the Bears for years, had the last laugh this week, winning the opening game 10-7, losing the second 5-4 and then winning the rubber match 9-6.

Elsewhere in the KBO, the fifth-place Lions beat the eighth-place Lotte Giants in their midweek series, winning the first two games — 7-4, 4-2 — before dropping the final game 7-6. Going into the weekend, the Lions dropped two games on the trot to the Dinos — 9-1, 4-1 — before taking a consolation game 4-2 on Sunday.

The two series wins saw the resurgent Dinos make the only move on the KBO table this week, climbing from dead last to ninth place.

The sixth-place Bears started off their week beating the last-place Eagles — 3-1, 1-5, 16-7 — before dropping their weekend series to the Twins.

The final game of the week pitted the seventh-place Wiz against the eighth-place Giants, with the Wiz winning the first two games — 9-4, 4-0 — before dropping the third game 13-0.

The KBO returns Tuesday as the Lions take on the Twins at Jamsil in southern Seoul, the Tigers visit the Dinos in Changwon, the Landers face the Wiz in Suwon, Gyeonggi, the Bears travel across Seoul to take on the Heres and the Giants and Eagles face off in Daejeon.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]