Ahn Hyun-min, Han Seung-taek, and Kim Hyun-su Hit Home Runs as KT Edges Samsung in Thriller to Take Game 1

KT Wiz took a hard-fought first step toward their second combined championship in five years.

Regular-season winners KT narrowly defeated the Samsung Lions 8-7 after nearly blowing an 8-0 lead in Game 1 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO Postseason Korean Series (best-of-seven) held at Suwon KT Wiz Park on November 3.

Historically, teams that win Game 1 of the Korean Series have gone on to win the championship 73.8 percent of the time (31 out of 42 instances) up until last year.

Game 2 between the two teams is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on November 4 at the same venue, featuring a starting pitching matchup between Ko Young-pyo of KT and Chris Paddack of Samsung.

Samsung's leadoff hitter Kim Ji-chan reached base with an infield single to shortstop in the top of the first inning, but missed a scoring opportunity when Koo Ja-wook struck out with one out and Kim Ji-chan was caught stealing second.

After the switch, KT pounded Samsung starting pitcher Choi Won-tae to score three runs.

Leadoff hitter Choi Won-jun singled to center field, stole second during Ahn Hyun-min's at-bat, and advanced to third on Choi Won-tae's wild pitch.

With runners on first and third and one out following Ahn Hyun-min's walk, regular-season RBI champion (139 RBIs) Sam Hilliard hammered a bases-clearing double into the left-center gap.

Hilliard, starting as the cleanup hitter and center fielder, made a spectacular leaping catch in the bottom of the first on a ball hit over Park Seung-gyu's head that looked like a sure double, before exploding for a hot extra-base hit at the plate.

With runners on third and two outs, Kim Sang-su drove Hilliard home with an infield single.

Samsung secondD baseman Ryu Ji-hyuk attempted to field the apparent center-field single with a reverse motion but ultimately dropped the ball.

In the third inning, KT opened the door for more runs with Kim Min-hyuk's leadoff double to center, followed by Ahn Hyun-min's two-run blast over the left-field wall to pull ahead 5-0 and knock out Choi Won-tae.

Ahn Hyun-min lightning-fast whipped his bat through a flat changeup from Choi Won-tae, sending it over the left-field fence.

Leading 5-0, KT appeared headed for an easy victory after catcher Han Seung-taek hit a solo home run to left-center in the fifth inning, followed by Kim Hyun-su's two-run shot to right in the sixth to make it 8-0.

Samsung, which had been unilaterally suppressed, mounted a massive counterattack in the top of the seventh.

Having been retired by 13 consecutive batters starting from Samsung's final batter in the second inning, Ryu Ji-hyuk, through the sixth inning with Kim Ji-chan, Samsung struck back as the seventh inning began with Park Seung-gyu's single to left and Koo Ja-wook's two-run homer to left-center to claw back two runs.

Lewin Díaz then singled to right field, chasing starter Davis Daniel from the game.

Facing KT left-hander Logan Allen, Samsung loaded the bases with no outs following a single by pinch-hitter Kim Sung-yoon and an infield single by Kim Young-woong, picking up their third run on an RBI groundout by Ryu Ji-hyuk.

With runners on second and third and two outs, Lee Jae-hyeon lifted an off-speed pitch from KT sidearm relief pitcher Kim Jung-woon for a two-run RBI single to left, narrowing the gap to 5-8.

After Son Dong-hyun allowed back-to-back foul balls to Kim Hun-gon and Lee Jae-hyeon, manager Lee Kang-chul made a high-stakes move with a 1-1 count by bringing in Kim Jung-woon, but Lee Jae-hyeon delivered a solid blow.

In the eighth inning, Samsung capitalized on a walk by Park Seung-gyu and a single by Koo Ja-wook to put runners on first and second with one out, closing the score to 6-8 on Kim Sung-yoon's RBI single to center.

KT closer Park Young-hyun handed over a run on a wild pitch with the bases loaded and two outs, nearly sending the game into unpredictable territory, but Samsung's chase ended when pinch-hitter Kim Hyun-jun's fly ball was caught by the left fielder.

KT caught a lucky break when third-base runner Koo Ja-wook, who has a sore thigh, was unable to tag up and score on Ryu Ji-hyuk's fly ball to left with the bases loaded earlier in the inning.

After Daniel exited following six innings with seven strikeouts and three runs allowed, the bullpen wobbled as Logan (0.1 innings, 2 runs allowed), Kim Jung-woon, and Oh Won-seok (0.1 inning, 1 run allowed each) failed to hold their ground, plunging KT into panic.

Game 1 drew a full house of 17,700 spectators, extending the postseason consecutive sellout streak to 47 games starting from Game 1 of the 2023 Korean Series.

Hilliard, who hit a two-run double in the first inning and finished 4-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored, swept the Game-Winning Hit Award and the Daily MVP honors, pocketing a 2 million won prize.

Kim Hyun-su added five total bases with two hits, increasing his postseason career record for total bases to 154.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.