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<p style="color: #1a5490; font-size: 16px;"><b>KT Wiz Dominates NC to Reclaim Top Spot</b></p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">KT Wiz crushed NC Dinos with a commanding <span style="color: #c7761f;"><b>10-4 victory</b></span> at their home stadium in Suwon, climbing back to a tie for first place in the league standings. The win improved KT's record to <b>27 wins, 1 draw, and 18 losses</b>, matching Samsung Lions at the top after Samsung fell to Lotte Giants earlier in the day.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">Meanwhile, NC continues to struggle, suffering their <span style="color: #d9534f;">fifth straight defeat</span>. They now sit at the bottom of the standings with an 18-1-27 record.</p>
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<p style="color: #2d7a3e; font-size: 15px;"><b>Early Lead Sets the Tone</b></p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">The outcome was determined in the opening frames. KT grabbed the first run in the bottom of the first inning when <b>Kim Min-hyuk</b> delivered a clutch hit with two outs and runners on base. Although NC managed to tie things up in the second inning, KT immediately answered back through <b>Choi Won-jun's</b> infield single to retake the lead.</p>
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<p style="color: #8e44ad; font-size: 15px;"><b>Third Inning Explosion</b></p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">KT's offense came alive in the third frame. With one out and runners on first and second, <b>Heo Kyung-min</b> doubled to drive in more runs. The rally continued as KT capitalized on defensive mistakes, timely hits from Kwon Dong-jin, a hit-by-pitch to Kim Sang-su, and a ground ball from Kim Hyun-soo to extend their advantage.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">Even against relief pitcher Son Ju-hwan, KT kept pouring it on. <b>Sam Hiliard</b> and <b>Kim Min-hyuk</b> connected for back-to-back RBI hits, pushing the score to a lopsided <span style="color: #c7761f;"><b>10-1</b></span>.</p>
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<p style="color: #1a5490; font-size: 15px;"><b>Standout Performances</b></p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">Starting pitcher <b>Matt Sauer</b> earned his third win of the season, lasting 5⅓ innings while allowing four runs. At the plate, both <b>Choi Won-jun</b> and <b>Kim Min-hyuk</b> went <span style="color: #2d7a3e;"><b>4-for-5</b></span>, with Kim adding two RBIs to his impressive stat line.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;">For NC, trusted starter Koo Chang-mo struggled badly, surrendering 10 hits and nine runs in just 2⅔ innings to take his second loss of the year.</p>
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<p style="color: #c7761f; font-size: 16px;"><b>Around the League</b></p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;"><b>Lotte 7, Samsung 5</b><br>
Lotte defeated Samsung to climb into eighth place with a 19-1-25 record, ending Samsung's three-game winning streak. The Giants took control in the fifth inning when Kim Dong-hyun hit a two-RBI triple and Park Seung-wook followed with a timely double, building a 5-2 lead. Samsung rallied to tie 5-5 in the eighth on Koo Ja-wook's bases-clearing double, but Lotte struck right back. With two outs and bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth, Jang Doo-sung delivered a two-run single to right field that sealed the win. Closer Choi Jun-yong picked up his second save despite a shaky ninth inning. Koo Ja-wook went 4-for-4 with three RBIs but couldn't prevent his team's loss.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;"><b>KIA 5, SSG 4</b><br>
KIA Tigers staged a comeback victory over SSG Landers in Gwangju, improving to 24-1-22 and holding fourth place. SSG dropped their sixth consecutive game. Trailing 4-1, KIA clawed back with a run in the seventh, then completely flipped the script in the eighth. Aderllin Rodriguez launched a solo home run to narrow the gap, then Na Sung-bum and Han Jun-su hit consecutive doubles to level the score. Kim Kyu-sung then crushed a triple to right-center for the winning run. Starter Yang Hyun-jong went five innings with four runs allowed, reaching a career milestone of 2,700⅓ innings pitched—becoming only the second pitcher in league history to reach 2,700 innings, following Song Jin-woo. Jo Sang-woo became the winning pitcher after recording just one out on a single pitch in the eighth inning, marking the 29th "one-pitch win" in league history.</p>
<p style="margin-left: 15px;"><b>Hanwha 5, Doosan 2</b><br>
Hanwha Eagles defeated Doosan Bears to move into a three-way tie for fifth place at 22-24, alongside SSG and Doosan. With the game tied 2-2 in the sixth inning, Hanwha scored the go-ahead run on a defensive error, then Moon Hyun-bin added a two-RBI hit to seal the victory. The Hanwha bullpen was outstanding, throwing shutout ball from the seventh inning onward to preserve the win.</p>
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