Pro baseball is back. Various bad news broke out right before the opening, but cloud spectators flocked to the baseball field. The new manager, who transformed from a ‘national hitter’ to a command tower, made his debut by tasting victories and defeats in his first two consecutive games. Fans cheered the novice coach’s challenge with a series of sold-outs. Although the 2023 KBO League started amidst concerns, a fierce game in which wins and losses were generally exchanged continued, as if proving the expectation that “there is no absolute strong or weak”. Now, it’s baseball season again.
The Doosan Bears, led by new head coach Lee Seung-yeop,메이저놀이터 lost 0-2 to the Lotte Giants at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul on the 2nd. In the beginning of the 7th inning, with one runner on first and third base, Han Dong-hee gave up a double in the middle left, which became the final point. Coach Lee, who smiled brightly in the previous day’s game and won 12-10 with a 3-run home run by Jose Rojas, a new foreign batter who joined the team, felt the bitter taste of defeat on this day. On this day, Jamsil Baseball Stadium received 23,750 spectators and succeeded in selling out two consecutive games following the previous day. It is the first time in four years that Doosan has succeeded in selling out two consecutive times at home.
SSG Landers, the winning team last season, also shared a 1 win and 1 loss with the Kia Tigers at home. SSG lost 5-9 to Kia at SSG Landers Field that day. Kirk McCarty, the starting pitcher, gave up 6 runs only in the 4th inning, giving up 10 hits (1 home run), 3 walks, 1 strikeout and 8 runs in 3⅓ innings. On this day, SSG became the first team related to Incheon to record a full crowd two consecutive days before the opening.
LG Twins and KT Wiz, who are considered strong contenders for the championship this season, exchanged wins and losses after bloody battles. LG defeated Katy 10-9 at KT Wiz Park in Suwon that day after a close match in the 11th overtime. On this day, LG gave up 4 runs at the end of the 8th inning with a 9-5 lead, but Lee Chun-woong bunt hit in the top of the 11th inning and scored 1 run to win. For Katie, starting pitcher Sohn Joon Sohn gave up 9 runs in 2⅓ innings, 9 hits, 1 walk, 1 walk, 1 strikeout, and it was a fatal blow.
The Hanwha Eagles, who actively strengthened their power during the Stove League and raised expectations for ‘escape from the bottom’, suffered two consecutive losses to the runner-up Kiwoom Heroes last season. They are the only team to lose the first two consecutive matches. In the game against Kiwoom held at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul that day, Hanwha succeeded in turning 6-4 by scoring 3 points in the top of the 8th inning. However, in the bottom of the 8th inning, they gave up 2 runs again and tied the score at 6-6, and eventually lost 6-7 after being pushed out in the bottom of the 9th inning with bases loaded. The previous day, Hanwha lost 2-3 to Kiwoom after overtime.
NC Dinos and Samsung Lions also recorded 1 win and 1 loss. NC collapsed 6-8 in the match against Samsung held at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on the 2nd. In the previous game, they won 8-0, but on this day, they led 6-1 until the 3rd inning, then lost a lot of runs in the 4th (2 points), 5th (3 points), and 6th (2 points), finally winning. couldn’t keep Samsung coach Park Jin-man won his first victory after taking office as the official head coach.
Meanwhile, on the opening day of the KBO League on the 1st, 105,450 spectators in all five stadiums filled the baseball stadium. It is the first time since the 10 club system was established in 2015 that the stadium was sold out before the opening game.