“Capitalized on opponent’s error in the 12th” ... Samsung beats KT to level Korean Series at 1-1

[Financial News] Samsung Lions beat the kt wiz after a grueling 12-inning battle, capitalizing on a costly error by their opponents to bring the series back to square one.
Samsung beat KT 3-2 in Game 2 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO postseason Korean Series (KS, best-of-seven) on the road at Suwon kt wiz Park on the 4th. After narrowly losing Game 1 the previous day, 7-8, Samsung claimed a valuable win on the road to even the series at 1-1 and head to its home city of Daegu with a lighter step.


Unlike the slugfest in Game 1, Game 2 unfolded as a classic pitchers’ duel between the two teams’ starters. KT starter Ko Young-pyo (seven innings, seven hits, no walks or hit batters, one run allowed) and Samsung starter Chris Paddack (seven innings, eight hits, one walk or hit batter, one run allowed) both held firm on the mound. Samsung took the lead in the top of the second on Lewin Díaz’s RBI triple, but KT tied it 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth on Hur Kyoung-min’s RBI single.
The player who kept fans on edge throughout the game was Samsung’s foreign hitter Díaz. Starting at first base and batting fifth, he went 4-for-6 with two RBIs and one run. Díaz missed the cycle by one home run, but gave his team a 2-1 lead with a go-ahead RBI single to right in the top of the 10th with two outs and runners on first and second.
But the joy was short-lived. With one out and runners on first and third in the bottom of the 10th, Díaz failed to field Sam Hilliard’s ground ball cleanly, committing an error that loaded the bases. Shaken reliever Won Tae-in then issued a bases-loaded walk to the next batter, Hyun-soo Kim, tying the game at 2-2 again.


The goddess of victory smiled on Samsung in the top of the 12th. With one out and runners on first and second, Samsung’s Lee Jae-hyeon hit a ground ball to the pitcher. KT veteran reliever Woo Kyu-min fielded it and threw to second, retiring the lead runner. But KT second baseman Oh Yoon-suk, trying to turn a double play, threw wildly to first. As first baseman Hyun-soo Kim failed to hold onto the ball, Díaz, the runner on second, raced around third and scored the winning run.
Bae Chan-seung came on in relief in the bottom of the 12th and closed out the long game with a scoreless inning. He earned his first postseason save, while Kim Tae-hoon, who pitched the 11th and retired the side in order, picked up the win in relief. Samsung starter Paddack, whose outstanding pitching laid a solid foundation for the victory, was named Daily Most Valuable Player (MVP) and received 1 million won in prize money.
KT even made the bold move of bringing in its high-leverage reliever Park Yeong-hyun early, with one out in the top of the eighth. But Oh Won-seok took the loss after allowing one run in a third of an inning in the bottom of the 12th. Meanwhile, Woo Kyu-min, who took the mound as KT’s eighth pitcher, set a Korean Series record as the oldest pitcher to appear, at 41 years and 9 months old.
A sellout crowd of 17,700 filled kt wiz Park that day, extending the postseason sellout streak—which began with Game 1 of the 2023 KS—to 48 games. After leveling the series, the two teams will take a day off before facing off in the pivotal Game 3 at Daegu Samsung Lions Park at 6:30 p.m. on the 6th.


[email protected] Park Ji-hyun Reporter