KT has reached 50 wins. They are the third team in the 2023 KBO, behind LG and SSG. KT defeated Hanwha 7-2 at Anbang Suwon on the 8th. No. 4 hitter Park Byung-ho (37) led the offense with three hits (4-for-4) and No. 3 Hwang Jae-gyun (36) with two hits (5-for-4) and three RBIs. Starting pitcher William Cuevas (33) pitched seven innings of one-run ball (five hits, eight strikeouts) to earn his fifth win (no-decision). KT improved to 13-3 in the second half of the season and 9-1 in its last 10 games. Fourth-place KT (0.532 winning percentage) is locked in a tiebreaker with third-place NC (0.533 winning percentage). Both teams trail second-place SSG by three games.
On the road, NC took a 2-0 lead over SSG to extend their winning streak to five games. In a battle of ace pitchers, NC's Eric Peddie (7 innings, 4 hits, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts) outdueled SSG's Kwang-hyun Kim (6 innings, 1 run, 5 hits, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts). Peddy (30), the all-time wins leader, fell to 15-3. NC scored its first and final run in the fourth inning on an outfield sacrifice fly by Yoon Hyung-jun (29) on a 1-3 pitching opportunity.
In Jamsil, home team Doosan defeated Samsung 5-3. They scored two runs in the first inning on a leadoff home run by Jung Soo-bin (33), his first of the season, and added three more in the fourth. Doosan suffered a setback when their starting catcher and No. 4 hitter, Yang Yang-ji (36), was diagnosed with a muscle strain in his left lateral side. Park Yoo-yeon (25), who wore a catcher's mask in Yang's place, helped starter Choi Seung-yong earn the win (one run in five and one-third innings) and also went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI before being replaced in the seventh inning.
In Gochuk, No. 7 Lotte beat No. 9 Kiwoom 3-1. With the score 1-1 in the top of the ninth, Ahn Chi-hong (33) hit an infield single and scored on an error by the opposing shortstop. Kiwoom lost its ninth straight game.
The Gwangju game was declared a rainout after heavy rain fell in the bottom of the second inning when LG led 8-0 over host KIA. Yang Hyun-jong (35) was spared the loss by the rain, as he was charged with eight runs (six earned) on nine hits in two innings. 토토