Kia Tigers Put Powerful Top Order at Center of KBO Postseason Opener
Kia Tigers manager Lee Bum-ho is counting on a deep top five led by 45-home-run star Kim Do-yeong as his club opens a best-of-five KBO postseason series against the LG Twins in Gwangju.
The Kia Tigers will lean on one of the Korea Baseball Organization’s most formidable batting orders as they begin their postseason campaign against the LG Twins in Gwangju on Saturday.
Manager Lee Bum-ho said the performance of his first five hitters could decide the opening game of the best-of-five first-round series at Gwangju-Kia Champions Field. The matchup brings together the third-seeded Tigers, who received a bye into the round, and the fourth-place Twins.
Park Jae-hyun will lead off after emerging as one of the league’s breakout players with 19 home runs and 21 stolen bases during the regular season. He will be followed by Kim Sun-bin, the most valuable player of the 2024 Korean Series.
The heart of the order begins with Kim Do-yeong in the No. 3 spot. The 2024 regular-season MVP led the KBO with 45 home runs this year, making him the central concern for the Twins’ pitching staff. Harold Castro and Na Sung-bum, who hit 21 and 31 home runs respectively, will bat behind him.
That depth gives Kia protection against an approach focused too heavily on neutralizing Kim. Lee said the Tigers are prepared for the Twins’ strategy and expressed confidence that Kim, Castro and Na can capitalize when they receive pitches to hit. He also emphasized that the lower half of the lineup remains important even as the top five are expected to set the tone.
The opening game carries added weight because recent KBO postseason history strongly favors the early winner. In the past 10 editions of this best-of-five round, the team taking Game 1 advanced nine times.
Kia must also manage the threat posed by LG slugger Austin Dean. Lee said the Tigers’ objective would be to limit the damage even if Dean hits a home run, while warning that LG has enough dangerous hitters that containing only one or two would not be sufficient.
The series opens with contrasting pressures. Kia enters rested after securing the third seed, while LG arrives with competitive momentum after defeating the Doosan Bears in the wild-card game. For the Tigers, converting their lineup’s regular-season power into immediate postseason production will be the first test of their bid to advance.