“I said I came to KT Wiz to win a championship, and here I am.”

Kim Sang-soo (33-KT), a key player in the “Samsung Dynasty” a decade ago, hopes to reach the top of the Korean Series once again with his new team.

Kim will bat first and play shortstop in Game 1 of the 2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO Playoffs against the NC Dinos at Katie Wise Park in Suwon on April 30.토스카지노

It will be the first postseason game for Kim “KT Man” Sang-soo. He left the Samsung Lions after last year’s season and signed a four-year, $2.9 billion free agent contract with KT.

Kim Sang-soo is an infielder with more experience in fall baseball than anyone else. He turned pro in 2009 and was a consistent postseason performer from 2010 to 2015, helping Samsung win four straight Korean Series titles from 2011 to 2014. He also made the playoffs in 2021.

But fall baseball with a new team feels new. “It feels different and exciting to be playing fall baseball in my first season with a new team,” said Kim Sang-soo before Game 1, “and I’m determined to play with a new mindset since it’s the postseason.”

Kim has multiple Korean Series championship rings, but he hasn’t had much to smile about in fall baseball lately. In the 2015 Korean Series, he lost to the Doosan Bears, ending a five-game winning streak. In 2021, they lost the best-of-seven series to KT and were pushed into the playoffs, and once again, they couldn’t get past the Doosan wall to advance to the Korean Series.

“We’ve made it to the playoffs, so of course the goal is to win,” said Kim Sang-soo, who is eager to unlock the championship this postseason. “First and foremost, I want to show a good performance as it’s my first fall baseball in a KT uniform.”

“At the beginning, I said, ‘I came to KT to win.’ However, we had a bad start to the season (falling to last place), so I thought I said something wrong, but fortunately, we rebounded. Now we have a chance to win the championship, and I will work hard to fulfill that promise.”

KT, which finished second in the regular season and went directly to the playoffs, will face NC. KT had a 10-6 record against NC in the regular season, but NC is currently on a roll. NC went through both the Wild Card Decider and the semi-playoffs with an undefeated record.

“NC, which I thought was the toughest of the three teams (NC, SSG Landers, and Doosan), made it all the way to the playoffs,” said Kim Sang-soo, adding, “They have a lot of organized and mobile players, which makes it even more nerve-wracking to play against them.”

It won’t be easy from the first game, as KT will have to deal with the ‘best pitcher in the KBO’ Eric Peddie (NC).

Peddie became the first foreign pitcher to win the Triple Crown by leading the league in wins (20), ERA (2.00), and strikeouts (209). It took him 37 years after Sun Dong-yeol in 1986 to reach the 20-win and 200-strikeout milestones.

“It won’t be easy to target Pedi, who is the best pitcher in the KBO, but I’m confident because I’ve had good results (2-1) in the games he’s pitched,” said Kim Sang-soo.

In a big game, a single mistake can turn the tide. “Defense is more important than offense in today’s game,” said Kim Sang-soo. “My position is shortstop, so I will pay more attention to my defense. Anyone can make a mistake, and the most important thing is not to repeat the same mistake.”