A mood-killing triple put him back on his heels. But he made up for it with a perfect finish. He became a hero.

Moon Sang-chul (KT Wiz) went 1-for-4 with a home run, one RBI, and two strikeouts as the No. 7 designated hitter in Game 1 of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO League Korean Series against the LG Twins at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on Sunday.

Moon appeared in all five games of the playoffs with the NC Dinos as a designated hitter, batting .267 with four hits (two home runs), four RBIs, two doubles, four walks and a 1.086 OPS. He showed his clutch ability in the playoffs as well, with three game-winning hits this season.

However, his first at-bat in the Korean Series was not a good one. In the top of the second inning, leadoff hitter Jang Jang-woo reached on a throwing error by third baseman Moon Bo-kyung, and Bae Jae-dae followed with a single to put runners on first and second. Moon Sang-chul came to the plate and tried to bunt, but the ball fell in front of the catcher. Park Dong-won threw to third base to catch Jang Jang-woo. Oh Ji-hwan then threw to first for a double play. Meanwhile, Choi Byeong-dae tried to advance to third, but Shin Min-jae gave the ball to Moon Bo-kyung, who tagged him. It was a triple.

It was the second Korean Series triple in history. It came 19 years after Yang Jun-hyuk of the Samsung Lions hit a triple in the top of the first inning of Game 7 of the Korean Series on October 29, 2004, at Jamsil Stadium.

Moon Sang-chul led off the fifth inning with a strikeout and came to bat in the seventh inning with runners on first and second, but struck out again.

But he made up for it in the top of the ninth with the score tied at 2-2. Two batters later, Choi Jae-dae drew a walk. Moon Sang-chul then came to the plate. Moon didn’t miss Go Woo-seok’s wild pitch. He hit a curveball that hit the top of the left field fence. Cho sprinted all the way home. Moon Sang-chul’s two-run double turned the game around for KT. In the bottom of the ninth, Park Young-hyun came on and finished the game without allowing a run. KT won the first game 3-2.

Moon Sang-chul, who was named the Daily MVP of the game, said at the official postgame press conference, “Go Woo-seok has the best fastball in Korea. “It was after the second strike, so I was preparing the fastest ball. I set up a zone where I could hit it, and when I got there, I didn’t hesitate to hit it.” 토토사이트

The bunt in the second inning was his own decision, not an order from the bench, so it must have been even more emotional. KT coach Lee Kang-cheol said, “I don’t know who would sign for a bunt. It looks like he was trying to bunt backwards. Ko Young-pyo pitched well and didn’t give LG the lead,” and “It wasn’t a one-run game, so I let him hit it. I ordered (Moon) Sang-chul to hit aggressively, but unexpectedly, he bunted himself. I don’t think I’m shocked that we won. I panicked when he bunted. I think Young-pyo really did a good job. It was a triple, so it was big, but he blocked it really well.”