The Hanwha Eagles have ended a nearly two-decade drought, clinching a berth in the Korean Series (KS) for the first time in 19 years after a decisive 11-2 victory over the Samsung Lions in Game 5 of the KBO Playoff (PO) on October 24. A jubilant crowd of 16,750 at Hanwha Life Ballpark in Daejeon witnessed the Eagles secure the best-of-five series with a 3-2 record, setting the stage for a championship showdown against the regular season champion LG Twins.
Hanwha’s victory was powered by a commanding performance from their foreign pitching duo, Cody Ponce and Ryan Weiss, and an explosive offense led by captain Chae Eun-seong. Starting pitcher Ponce set the tone, silencing the Samsung bats over five innings, allowing five hits and one run while racking up nine strikeouts. Weiss took over in the sixth, closing out the game with four innings of relief, surrendering one run on four hits and striking out four, successfully executing manager Kim Kyung-moon’s planned total pitching effort.
The Eagles’ offense erupted early, with Chae Eun-seong driving in five runs on four at-bats, including a sacrifice fly in the first and crucial two-run scoring singles in the third and fifth innings. Moon Hyun-bin, who hit a three-run homer in a Game 4 loss, continued his hot streak with a two-run shot in the eighth to seal the win.
The Playoff MVP award went to reliever Moon Dong-ju for his exceptional work out of the bullpen. Despite the team's starters struggling in the first three games, Moon delivered a dominant performance in relief across Games 1 and 3, tallying 10 strikeouts over six scoreless innings to record a win and a hold, proving indispensable to Hanwha’s series victory.
The Eagles' path to the KS was marked by late-season struggles, losing the regular season title to the LG Twins on the final day, and a controversial playoff stretch involving closer Kim Seo-hyeon, who gave up game-changing home runs in Games 1 and 4. Manager Kim Kyung-moon, however, maintained his trust, stating before Game 5 that the young closer would be the designated man in the next save situation.
Hanwha's advance represents a personal quest for manager Kim Kyung-moon, who has reached the Korean Series four times previously with the Doosan Bears and NC Dinos (2005, 2007, 2008, 2016) but has yet to win a championship. Heading into his fifth attempt, Kim expressed confidence in his team, noting, "If players who didn't perform well in the PO, including Kim Seo-hyeon, can step up in the Korean Series, I believe we will achieve a good result. I will continue to trust and use Kim Seo-hyeon."
The Korean Series, a best-of-seven format, is anticipated to be a classic "Clash of Offense vs. Defense." The Hanwha Eagles boast the league’s best team ERA ($3.55$) in the regular season, while the LG Twins led the league with a team batting average of $0.278$. While LG held a slight advantage during the regular season with an $8$ win, $7$ loss, $1$ draw record against Hanwha, the postseason is a different beast. Game 1 is scheduled for October 26 at 2:00 PM at Jamsil Baseball Stadium, the home field of the LG Twins.
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