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Twins beat Eagles 8-2 in Game 1 of Korean Series

Published: 26 Oct. 2025, 19:50

Park Hae-min, center, and other Twins players celebrate after their 8-2 victory over the Eagles in Game 1 of the 2025 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO Korean Series at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 26. [NEWS1]

LG Twins captain Park Hae-min, 35, has long been a source of frustration for Hanwha Eagles fans. Every time he faces them, his stellar defensive plays seem to shatter the team's momentum.

Half-joking, half-serious, Eagles fans have declared mock bans on Park, such as “Don’t let him through the Daejeon Tollgate” and “Ban him from Seongsimdang,” a famous bakery in their home city.

Park took the jokes in stride. “I’m not offended at all,” he once said with a smile. “If anything, it feels like a compliment — a sign that they recognize my value.”

It might be time to consider lifting that “ban,” but Park isn’t making it easy. As the Twins met the Eagles for the first time in the postseason, he once again tormented them — this time with both his glove his bat.

In Game 1 of the Korean Series, held Sunday at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul, the Twins cruised past the Eagles 8-2 to take the early lead in the best-of-seven championship. Teams that win Game 1 of the Korean Series have gone on to claim the title 73.2 percent of the time. With a sold-out home crowd behind them, the defending champions made a confident start toward what would be their fourth title — after 1990, 1994 and 2023.

Starting pitcher Anders Tolhurst threw six solid innings, allowing seven hits, no walks and two earned runs while striking out seven to earn the game's Daily MVP honors.

Park Hae-min of the Twins celebrates after hitting a home run in the bottom of the fifth inning during Game 1 of the 2025 Korean Series between the Eagles and the Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 26. [NEWS1]

Park’s impact came early. In the top of the first inning, with a runner on first and one out, the Eagles’ Moon Hyun-bin, who had been on a hot streak through the playoffs, sent a deep fly ball to center field.

Park raced toward the wall and, with perfect timing, leaped into the fence to make a spectacular catch — robbing Moon of a likely extra-base hit and silencing the visiting dugout.

The Twins immediately capitalized in the bottom half of the inning. Taking advantage of Eagles starter Moon Dong-ju's control issues, Kim Hyun-soo drove in a run with a groundout, and Moon Bo-gyeong followed with an RBI double to left-center to make it 2-0.

With the Twins clinging to that slim lead in the fifth, Park stepped up to lead off the inning. He had been just 1-for-7 against Moon during the regular season, but this time he turned on a 2-2 curveball, sending it over the right field wall.

As the ball cleared the fence, Park tossed his bat high and roared toward the dugout, celebrating a rare home run — his fourth of the year and first in 15 Korean Series games across his career with the Samsung Lions (2013–14) and the Twins (2023–).

Park Hae-min of the Twins, front, celebrates after hitting a home run in the bottom of the fifth inning during Game 1 of the 2025 Korean Series between the Eagles and the Twins at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on Oct. 26. [YONHAP]

“I wasn’t even trying for a home run — I just wanted to get on base,” Park said after the game. “But it worked out perfectly. It’s a great way to start the Series. I’ll gladly take Eagles fans’ complaints for just three more wins.”

Twins manager Youm Kyoung-youb praised his captain’s all-around performance. “That catch in the first inning was huge, but honestly, the home run made me even happier,” Youm said. “It was a win that gave everyone confidence.”

The Twins added one more run that inning to chase Moon Dong-ju from the mound, then piled on four more against the Eagles bullpen. Shin Min-jae led the offense with three hits, two RBIs and three runs scored.

Game 2 of the Series will be played Monday at 6:30 p.m. at the same venue, with Im Chan-kyu starting for the Twins and Ryu Hyun-jin taking the mound for the Eagles.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY BAE YOUNG-EUN,KO BONG-JUN [[email protected]]