The Twins last won the Korean Series in the early '90s. What did those victories look like?

Baseball

Published: 14 Nov. 2023, 14:37 Updated: 14 Nov. 2023, 15:50

The Twins last won the Korean Series in the early '90s. What did those victories look like?

The LG Twins celebrate after winning the 1990 Korean Series in a photo published by the JoongAng Ilbo on Oct. 29, 1994. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The LG Twins won the 2023 Korean Series on Monday, beating the KT Wiz 6-2 in Game 5 to win the series 4-1 and claim the highest prize in Korean baseball.

Monday's win ended a 29-year drought for the Twins, the second-longest time a KBO team has gone without lifting the Korean Series trophy. The Seoul club last took the title in 1994, before six members of Monday's series-winning squad were even born.

Prior to the 1994 victory, the Twins also won the 1990 Korean Series. Those three titles — 1990, 1994 and 2023 — remain the only three times the KBO-founding club has won the championship in the league's 42-season history.

But what did those 1990 and 1994 victories look like? The Korea JoongAng Daily delved into the JoongAng Ilbo archive to see how the Korean newspaper — the Korea JoongAng Daily was not launched until 2000 — covered those two historic victories.

The LG Twins celebrate winning the 1990 Korean Series. [JOONGANG ILBO]

The 1990 JoongAng Ilbo sports page ran with a headline celebrating LG's first Korean Series win in the first season after the conglomerate bought the company from MBC. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

A full-page advertisement in the Oct. 29, 1990 edition of the JoongAng Ilbo celebrates the LG Twins' victory in the Korean Series. LG at the time was called Lucky GoldStar, and the ad included promotions for some of the company's newest televisions. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The JoongAng Ilbo sports page from October 1994 marks the Twins' victory over the Pacific Dolphins. The headline refers to the Twins by the literal Korean translation of the word and uses a traditional Korean expression that roughly translates as ″Oh, what a happy day.″ [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The 1994 JoongAng Ilbo sports section carried a two-page spread celebrating the Twins' win. The second page carried analysis on the season, particularly highlighting the work of the club's front of house staff. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The LG Twins throw manager Lee Kwang-hwan in the air after winning the 1994 Korean Series. [YONHAP]

An LG advertisement in the 1994 edition of the JoongAng Ilbo marks the Twins' second Korean Series victory. The ad, taken out by Lucky GoldStar, thanked fans for their love and support. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

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