Wiz beat Bears to become first underdogs ever to win KBO Wildcard

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Wiz beat Bears to become first underdogs ever to win KBO Wildcard

Published: 03 Oct. 2024, 17:21 Updated: 03 Oct. 2024, 17:24

JIM BULLEY
jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr

The KT Wiz celebrate after beating the Doosan Bears 1-0 in Game 2 of the KBO Wildcard series at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Thursday. [YONHAP]

The KT Wiz became the first KBO team ever to finish the regular season in fifth place and go on to win the Wildcard on Thursday, beating the Doosan Bears 1-0 at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul.

That also makes the Bears the only fourth-place team ever to lose the Wildcard, a three-game series that is weighted in favor of the higher-ranked club.

In the KBO, the fourth-place regular season finisher enters the Wildcard with a game already in hand. That means the fifth-place team has to win two games back-to-back to advance — even a tie would be game over.

Since the series was introduced in 2015, not a single team has managed to do it. Only twice has the series been pushed to two games: The Kia Tigers managed one win before falling to the LG Twins in 2016, and the Kiwoom Heroes managed one before falling to the Bears in 2021.

But those days are over. The Wiz have now broken the Wildcard curse to book a spot in the first round of the playoffs, and they did it in style — shutting out the Bears across both games of the series.

The Bears' undoing came within minutes of the series starting. The Wiz got off to a rapid start in Game 1 on Wednesday, getting three runs across the board before the first out and four by the end of the first inning.

Doosan Bears manager Lee Seung-yuop reacts during Game 2 of the KBO Wildcard series between the KT Wiz and the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Thursday. [NEWS1]

That was it for the game, the Bears unable to recover despite having nine innings of work ahead of them for a final score of 4-0.

Game 2 was quieter, both sides unable to get anything across until the sixth inning when Kang Baek-ho produced the sole run of the game. That effort secures a 1-0 win and a ticket to the first round of the playoffs.

The Wiz now advance to face the LG Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul, the same stadium that they've played the last two games in.

The first round will open over the weekend at Jamsil, before breaking on Oct. 7 and resuming at Suwon KT Wiz Park on Oct. 8 and, if needed, Oct. 9. If a fifth game is required, it will be back at Jamsil on Oct. 11.

The winner of that round will advance to face the Samsung Lions in the second round on Oct. 13. Also a five-game series, the second round will start at Daegu Samsung Lions Park for the opening two games, break for a day and then resume at the opposing team’s stadium, heading back to Daegu for a fifth game on Oct. 19 if needed.

KT Wiz pitcher Ko Young-pyo celebrates during Game 2 of the KBO Wildcard series between the KT Wiz and the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Whoever makes it through that will face the Kia Tigers at Gwangju Kia Champions Field on Oct. 21 for the opening game of the 2024 Korean Series. The championship starts in Gwangju for two games on Oct. 21 and 22, moves to the second playoff winner’s stadium on Oct. 24 and 25, and then returns to Gwangju from Oct. 27 until a winner of the seven-game series is determined.

If the Lions make it through the second round of playoffs to face the Tigers in the Korean Series, it will mark the first that the championship has been played entirely out of Seoul since 2012, when the Lions beat the SK Wyverns, now the SSG Landers, and the first time outside of the greater Seoul area (which includes Incheon and Gyeonggi) since 2006, when the Lions beat the Hanwha Eagles.

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