LG at Doosan

SEOUL, South Korea (Interstat) — The first-place LG Twins visit the Doosan Bears on Saturday afternoon at Jamsil Stadium, with the league-leading Twins aiming to extend their dominance over a struggling Bears club. First pitch is set for 2 p.m. under cloudy skies with a temperature of 79 degrees.

LG (15-7-1) enters Saturday’s contest after beating Doosan 4-1 on Friday, a victory that improved the Twins’ record to 5-1 in their last six games. Doosan (9-13) has lost three of its last four and sits near the bottom of the KBO standings.

Right-hander Im Chan-kyu will start for LG. Im is coming off a win against these same Bears on Friday, allowing one earned run and six hits over 5 2/3 innings with two strikeouts. He has been inconsistent this season, as evidenced by a loss on April 18 when he surrendered six earned runs in 4 1/3 innings against Samsung. However, he has won three of his last four decisions and also threw 2 1/3 scoreless innings in a tie against Hanwha on April 22.

Doosan counters with right-hander Choi Seung-yong, who took the loss in Friday’s series opener. Choi allowed two earned runs and five hits over 5 1/3 innings with four strikeouts. He has been equally erratic: Choi won on April 18 against Kia (6 2/3 innings, two earned runs) but lost his other three April starts, including a rough outing April 1 against Samsung in which he gave up four earned runs in three innings.

Friday’s game was largely decided by a three-run outburst from LG designated hitter Moon Bo-gyeong, who went 3 for 4 with three RBIs. The Twins’ bullpen also held strong, with Jang Hyun-sik tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings. For Doosan, relievers Kim Jeong-woo and Lee Byeong-heon combined for 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.

The teams have met once this season, with LG winning in convincing fashion. According to Interstat’s game simulator, the Twins hold a clear advantage: the model projects a 5-3 final score and gives LG a 64.4 percent probability of winning based on its ELO ratings.

Both clubs have identical schedules ahead. After Saturday’s matinee, the teams face each other again Sunday at Jamsil before LG travels to face KT Wiz and Doosan hosts Samsung Lions in midweek series.