Led by Kim Do-young's home run barrage, the Kia Tigers of the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) reduced the magic number to one for their first direct trip to the Korean Series in seven years.
Kia won 11-5 against the visiting KT Wiz of the 2024 Shinhan SOL Bank KBO League on Saturday at Katie Wiz Park in Suwon, South Korea.
With 83 wins (51 losses and two ties) on the season, KIA can clinch first place in the regular season for the first time in seven years if it wins just one of its remaining eight regular-season games or if second-place Samsung Lions loses just once.
To do so, KIA needs to win against the SSG Landers in Incheon on Sunday or Samsung loses to the Doosan Bears in Jamsil to erase the magic number.
Kia took advantage of an error in the top of the second inning to take the lead.
With runners on first and second, Kim Sun-bin's grounder to the third baseman was misplayed by the KT third baseman, allowing Na Sung-beom to score from second.
With runners on second and third, Byun Woo-hyuk singled and Kim Tae-gun followed with a squeeze bunt to make it 3-0.
In the top of the third inning, Kim Do-young made it 4-0 with his first home run of the season.
Kim took advantage of a fastball from KT starter Wes Benjamin and launched a 130-meter home run over the left-center field fence.
It was Kim's first home run since April 1 against the Daegu Samsung Lions.
KT rallied back in the bottom of the sixth inning, scoring a run on a double by leadoff hitter Oh Yoon-seok and an RBI single by Oh Jae-il.
In the bottom of the seventh inning, 토토사이트 Jeong Jun-young led off with a single, followed by Ahn Hyun-min's walk and Moon Sang-chul's RBI single.
With runners on first and third, Moon stole second and Oh Yoon-seok tied the game with a double to left field.
KT took the lead for good when Oh Jae-il hit a bases-loaded single to left field.
Kia answered back with a home run of their own.
In the top of the eighth inning, after leadoff hitter Kim Do-young singled, the KIA bench brought in pinch-hitter Lee Woo-sung for Na Sung-beom.
Lee answered the bench's expectations with a pinch-hit, game-winning two-run homer over the left field fence.
In the top of the ninth, Park Jung-woo singled to score one run before Kim Do-young hit his 37th three-run home run of the season to extend the lead to 10-5.
With the home run, Kim broke the franchise record for most home runs by a Korean player, set by Kim Sang-hyun (36) in 2009.
Kim now has 39 stolen bases on the season, and with three more home runs and one stolen base in his remaining eight games, he will join the KBO's second 40-homer, 40-stolen base club in history.
Kia scored one run on an opponent's error and received the opponent's white flag.
Katie Wise Park sold out for the 10th time this season.
In a game played in Jamsil, the Doosan Bears defeated the Kiwoom Heroes 5-4 in extra innings to move into sole possession of fourth place.
Kiwoom took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth inning when Kim Byung-hwi drew a bases-loaded walk and Lee Joo-hyung hit an RBI single to right field.
Doosan tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the sixth when Kim Jae-hwan singled to right field with the bases loaded.
Kiwoom answered back in the top of the seventh when leadoff hitter Byun Sang-kwon led off with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt, and two batters later, Lee Joo-hyung singled up the middle to bring home Byun.
Doosan loaded the bases in the bottom of the eighth inning with back-to-back singles by Yang Seok-hwan and Jared Young, and Kang Seung-ho drove in two runs with a double to left-center to make it a 3-2 game.
Doosan brought up Kim Taek-yeon in the ninth to preserve the win, but he was unable to save a run and allowed the tying run to score.
Kiwoom tied the game at 3-3 in the top of the ninth on a squeeze bunt by Kim Byung-hwi with runners on second and third.
In the top of the 10th inning, with runners on first and third, Kim scored a run on a sacrifice fly by Won Sung-joon.
Doosan tied the game in the bottom of the 10th when leadoff hitter Yang Seok-hwan hit his 30th solo arch of the season.
With the bases loaded, Jung Soo-bin hit a sacrifice fly to left field to end the game.