Seoul: The Doosan Bears thwarted the LG Twins' aspirations to clinch the South Korean baseball pennant at home with a decisive 6-0 victory on Tuesday night.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Twins were aiming to secure the best regular-season record in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) and needed either a win or a favorable outcome from the Hanwha Eagles' game against the Lotte Giants. Unfortunately for the Twins, neither scenario came to pass. They managed only three hits at Jamsil Baseball Stadium, while the Eagles edged out a 1-0 victory in 10 innings against the Giants at Daejeon Hanwha Life Ballpark.
The Twins, now standing at 85-54-3, will make another attempt to secure their spot in their season finale against the NC Dinos on Wednesday night. With the Eagles trailing by 1 1/2 games at 83-56-3, they will face the SSG Landers on Wednesday before concluding their regular season against the KT Wiz on Friday.
The Bears wrapped up their season in ninth place, holding a record of 61-77-6. Former Twin Yang Suk-hwan contributed significantly to the Bears' win, hitting a two-run home run in the top of the fourth inning. Bears starter Cole Irvin held the Twins scoreless over 5 1/3 innings, allowing just two singles.
The Twins' opportunities were hampered by double play balls, notably in the fourth inning, when Austin Dean's leadoff walk was nullified by Moon Bo-gyeong's double play. In the sixth inning, the Twins' rally was cut short by another double play after a walk and a single off Irvin.
The Bears extended their lead in the seventh inning with Park Ji-hoon's double, and further widened the gap in the ninth with Park's RBI single and Jake Cave's double, concluding the game with a 6-0 scoreline.