DAEGU (Interstat) — So Hyeong-jun allowed one earned run over six innings, and the KT Wiz used a 15-hit attack to beat the Samsung Lions 4-2 on Monday afternoon at Daegu Samsung Lions Park. KT improved to 89-48-8. Samsung dropped to 81-58-5. The game drew an announced attendance of 24,000 and took 3 hours, 6 minutes.

So Hyeong-jun (7-3) earned the win after scattering two hits, walking one and striking out eight. He held Samsung to one earned run and kept the Lions off balance through six innings. Oh Won-seok and Kim Jeong-woon each threw a scoreless inning in relief. Park Yeong-hyun closed the game and recorded his 23rd save. Miyamori Satoshi (0-3) took the loss for Samsung.

KT’s offense finished with 15 hits and scored four runs. Choi Won-jun went 3-for-6 with one RBI. Ryu Hyun-in went 4-for-5 with one RBI. Moon Sang-chul hit a home run and drove in one run. Kim Hyun-soo singled and walked, while Heo Kyoung-min added two hits. Cho Dae-hyun singled and drove in a run, and Ahn Hyun-min reached base with a single and a walk. Han Seung-taek also singled, and Kwon Dong-jin walked twice. The Wiz repeatedly put runners on base and forced Samsung’s bullpen to work out of trouble.

KT opened the scoring in the first inning. Choi Won-jun doubled to left field, moved up on Ryu Hyun-in’s single to center, and scored on the same sequence. Ryu Hyun-in’s single brought Choi home and gave the Wiz an early lead. Ahn Hyun-min then grounded into a double play, and Sam Hilliard grounded out to short, ending the inning. KT added to its lead in the fourth. Kim Hyun-soo walked, and Heo Kyoung-min singled to left. After Bae Jeong-dae popped out, Cho Dae-hyun singled to left, scoring Kim Hyun-soo. Jang Jun-won walked to load the bases, and Choi Won-jun singled to right, bringing home Heo Kyoung-min. Ryu Hyun-in popped out to second, and a runner was out at second to end the threat.

KT threatened again in the second when Kim Hyun-soo singled down the left-field line, but Heo Kyoung-min struck out, Bae Jeong-dae flied out to center and Cho Dae-hyun popped out to short. In the third, Jang Jun-won fouled out, Choi Won-jun grounded out to the pitcher, Ryu Hyun-in singled down the right-field line, Ahn Hyun-min was hit by a pitch and Sam Hilliard struck out. The Wiz left runners on base in the fifth after Ahn walked, Kim Hyun-soo singled and Heo Kyoung-min singled, but Bae Jeong-dae and Cho Dae-hyun struck out. In the sixth, Choi singled and Ryu singled, and Hilliard walked, but Oh Yoon-suk flied out to center. KT also put two runners on in the eighth when Ryu singled and Ahn singled, but Hilliard flied out to center.

Samsung answered with solo power. Kim Hun-gon homered to left field. Later, Park Seung-kyu delivered a pinch-hit home run. Those were the only runs for the Lions, who managed five hits. Kim Young-woong doubled down the right-field line, and Jeon Byeong-woo reached after being hit by a pitch. Kim Ji-chan reached on a fielder’s choice. Samsung could not sustain rallies against So Hyeong-jun and the KT bullpen. Choi Hyoung-woo struck out twice, while Kang Min-ho, Ryu Ji-hyuk and Kim Seong-yoon also struck out. A double play helped KT escape a seventh-inning jam after Jeon Byeong-woo was hit by a pitch and Kim Hun-gon singled to center. Park Gye-beom grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Samsung’s best early chance came in the third after Kim Young-woong doubled down the right-field line and Lee Jae-hyeon was hit by a pitch. Kim Ji-chan sacrificed the runners over, but Kim Seong-yoon grounded out to short and Ryu Ji-hyuk struck out. In the fourth, Choi Hyoung-woo, Jeon Byeong-woo and Kim Hun-gon all struck out. Kang Min-ho struck out in the fifth, and Kim Young-woong walked before Lee Jae-hyeon flied out to center. Kim Ji-chan reached on a fielder’s choice, but Park Gye-beom was out at second. In the sixth, Kim Seong-yoon grounded out and Ryu Ji-hyuk struck out and flied out. In the seventh, Jeon was hit by a pitch and Kim Hun-gon singled, but Kang Min-ho struck out and Park Gye-beom grounded into a double play. In the eighth, Lee flied out, Kim Ji-chan grounded out and Kim Seong-yoon struck out.

Samsung’s bullpen had some effective stretches. Lee Seung-min threw 1 1/3 hitless innings, walking one and striking out two. Bae Chan-seung followed with 1 2/3 innings of two-hit relief, allowing no runs, walking one and striking out three. Yang Chang-seop worked two innings and allowed one earned run on three hits with one strikeout. Miyamori Satoshi was charged with the loss. The Lions used their staff to slow KT at times, but the Wiz’s 15-hit output proved too much.

KT’s bullpen protected the lead. Oh Won-seok struck out one in a scoreless inning. Kim Jeong-woon allowed one hit but no runs and struck out one. Park Yeong-hyun finished the game and earned his 23rd save. The Wiz defense also turned key plays, including an early double play and a late double play that erased a Samsung scoring chance. The victory moved KT to 89-48-8, while Samsung fell to 81-58-5. KT has now won the past three meetings between the teams.

Moon Sang-chul added an insurance run with a home run to left field in the ninth. Han Seung-taek singled, and Kwon Dong-jin walked later in the inning, but Choi Won-jun grounded out to short to end the top half. In the bottom of the ninth, KT closed the door to secure the win. The Wiz finished with four runs on 15 hits, while the Lions finished with two runs on five hits. KT’s balanced attack included three hits from Choi Won-jun, four from Ryu Hyun-in, and a home run from Moon Sang-chul. Samsung got a pinch-hit homer from Park Seung-kyu and a solo shot from Kim Hun-gon.

The game was played in the evening at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu, South Korea. The attendance was 24,000, and the time of game was 3:06. So Hyeong-jun’s previous recent outings included a win against Samsung in which he threw five innings and allowed two hits and no earned runs, and a win at Kia in which he threw six innings and allowed four hits and two earned runs. He continued that form on Monday.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of KT Wiz 9, Samsung Lions 6. Interstat’s ELO system had projected KT with a 52.9 percent probability to win.