Led by seven shutout innings from series MVP Denyi Reyes, the Samsung Lions overcame the LG Twins 1-0 in Game 4 to clinch the best-of-five series. They will now advance to the Korean Series for the first time in nine years and square off against the top-seeded Kia Tigers.
Pitching for the second time in the series, Reyes again proved too much for the Twins bats to handle. His pitch-to-contact approach was masterful, as he allowed just three hits without walking a batter despite notching only strikeouts. The right-hander combined to allow just one earned run over 13 ⅓ innings in his two starts against the Twins, earning the win in both Game 1 and Game 4.
병살로 이닝 종료 위기 탈출 레예스 너 짱이야???? pic.twitter.com/JzphMDOmtg
— 종땀 (@jongsinsl) October 19, 2024
As good as Reyes was in this contest, Twins starter Deitrich Enns kept his team in the game by matching him pitch-for-pitch. The left-hander struck out eight and allowed just one hit over six scoreless innings, turning in one of his best starts of the season despite having his start pushed back twice due to rainouts.
With Enns over the century mark in pitches and the score still stuck at zero, the Twins pulled their ace in favor of reliever Son Ju-young to begin the seventh. Son would pitch a 1-2-3 seventh inning but give up what proved to be the decisive blow in the eighth inning when Kang Min-ho led off the frame with a 425-foot blast.
삼성 라이온즈 9년 만의 한국시리즈 진출!
삼성 강민호 프로 데뷔 21년 만에 첫 한국시리즈 진출 pic.twitter.com/rq31m4OCdC
— 배지헌 Jiheon Pae (@jhpae117) October 19, 2024
The 1-0 lead put Reyes in line for the win, and he departed in the bottom of the eighth after 113 pitches. Unlike the Tigers, however, the Lions bullpen would have no hiccups. Lim Chang-min would strike out two in a scoreless eighth, and Kim Jae-yoon would need just six pitches to complete a 1-2-3 ninth.
The loss marked the end of the road for the Twins and ensured that the KBO will have a different champion for the eighth consecutive season. The Lions, meanwhile, are looking for their first Korean Series title since 2014, which was their last of four straight championships. To do so, they will have to go through the Kia Tigers, who easily clinched the KBO’s top seed with an 87-55 record, a mark that was 8.5 games better than the Lions. The first pitch of Game One will be Monday at 5:30 a.m. EST.
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