[DiaryPoint = Reporter Eom Ju-yong] Samsung beat KT 5-1 in Game 3 of the Korean Series at Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on Nov. 6, taking a 2-1 lead in the series. Game 4 will be played at the same ballpark at 2 p.m. on Nov. 7, with SBS broadcasting live. After dropping Game 1, 8-7, Samsung edged KT 3-2 in a 12-inning Game 2 and then won Game 3 for its second straight victory.
Samsung will start rookie right-hander Jang Chan-hee, while KT will send left-hander Logan Allen to the mound. In the best-of-seven Korean Series, the teams split the first two games before Samsung won Game 3, leaving it two wins from the championship. KT has lost two in a row after taking the opener and needs a win in Game 4 to even the series.
In Game 3, starter Ariel Jurado held KT to one run on six hits over seven innings. KT scored first in the top of the first, but Samsung tied it in the bottom half on Choi Hyung-woo’s RBI single. Samsung moved ahead in the second on, among other plays, a two-run triple by Koo Ja-wook, then added an eighth-inning solo homer by Park Seung-gyu to seal the win.
Koo’s extra-base hit came with two outs and runners on first and third in the second inning. Despite discomfort in his leg, he hit the ball and ran all the way to third, driving in two runs. After the game, Koo said, “Everyone gave it their all. It was moving.” The play proved pivotal in giving Samsung an early lead.
Jang appeared in relief in Game 1 on Nov. 3, allowing two runs over two innings. During the regular season, he went 4-5 with three holds and a 4.50 ERA in 41 games. Allen made 17 regular-season appearances, going 7-5 with a 3.59 ERA. Their season records, along with Jang’s Game 1 outing, set the stage for the Game 4 matchup.
In Korean Series history, teams that won Game 3 after splitting the first two games have gone on to win the championship 16 times in 18 tries. That is an 88.9% title rate, a historical trend now in Samsung’s favor after its Game 3 win. It is not a prediction or guarantee of a Samsung championship; it reflects past outcomes in the same series situation.
Game 4 was pushed back by a day from its original schedule. The KBO said it moved the Korean Series schedule back one day to ensure at least one travel day between series, following the scheduling of Game 5 of the playoffs for Nov. 1. Samsung is looking for a third straight home win, while a KT victory would even the series at 2-2.