2008 Korean Series
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Korean Series began on Monday, the 26th of October, at the Munhak Baseball Stadium
Munhak Baseball Stadium
Munhak Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Incheon, South Korea. It is the home stadium of SK Wyverns. The stadium holds 28,500 people and was built in 2001. It is adjacent to Incheon Munhak Stadium.- See also :...

 in Incheon
Incheon
The Incheon Metropolitan City is located in northwestern South Korea. The city was home to just 4,700 people when Jemulpo port was built in 1883. Today 2.76 million people live in the city, making it Korea’s third most populous city after Seoul and Busan Metropolitan City...

. It featured the SK Wyverns
SK Wyverns
SK Wyverns Baseball Club is a South Korean professional baseball team founded in 2000. Based in Incheon, they play their home games at Munhak Baseball Stadium.Their current manager is Man Soo Lee .-History:...

, who had claimed home ground advantage by finishing in first place at the end of the season, and the Doosan Bears
Doosan Bears
The Doosan Bears are a professional baseball team based in Seoul, South Korea. They are a member of the Korean Baseball Organization....

, who had finished second and had defeated the Samsung Lions
Samsung Lions
Samsung Lions Baseball Club is a Korea Professional Baseball team founded in 1982. They are based in Daegu and are members of the Korean Baseball Organization. Their home stadium is Daegu Baseball Stadium...

 in a best-of-7 playoff series (4 games to 2) to advance to the next round. The SK Wyverns
SK Wyverns
SK Wyverns Baseball Club is a South Korean professional baseball team founded in 2000. Based in Incheon, they play their home games at Munhak Baseball Stadium.Their current manager is Man Soo Lee .-History:...

 won the series in five games, after defeating Doosan four games straight after dropping the opening game. The series was interesting, as it pitted the final 2 teams from the 2007 Korean Series
2007 Korean Series
The 2007 Korean Series began on Monday, the 22nd of October, at the Munhak Baseball Stadium in Incheon. It featured the SK Wyverns, who had claimed home ground advantage by finishing in first place at the end of the season, and the Doosan Bears, who had finished second and had swept the Hanhwa...

 in a rematch. Kim Sung-Geun, known as 'baseball god', and Kim Kyeong-Moon, the coach of the Korean Olympic Baseball team both had a lot to prove.

Game 1, October 26

Munhak Baseball Stadium
Munhak Baseball Stadium
Munhak Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Incheon, South Korea. It is the home stadium of SK Wyverns. The stadium holds 28,500 people and was built in 2001. It is adjacent to Incheon Munhak Stadium.- See also :...

, Incheon
Incheon
The Incheon Metropolitan City is located in northwestern South Korea. The city was home to just 4,700 people when Jemulpo port was built in 1883. Today 2.76 million people live in the city, making it Korea’s third most populous city after Seoul and Busan Metropolitan City...



The first game of the series began at the home stadium of the Wyverns, but they failed to get the victory on opening game 2 years straight as Doosan got a decisive 5-2 victory, thanks to the excellent pitching of Matt Randal. Young prodigy Kim Gwang-Hyeon started for the Wyverns but was unable to shut down Doosan's hitting.

SK struck first, as 2007's MVP Kim Jae-hyeon shot a solo home run over the right field fence. Doosan answered back in the 5th, when Chae Sang-byung
Chae Sang-Byung
Chae Sang-Byung is a South Korean catcher who plays for the Samsung Lions in the Korea Baseball Organization.-Amateur career :Chae attended Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea...

 got onto 1st base with a line drive towards 3rd base. Jeon Sang-Ryeol bunt-sacrificed, then Chae advanced to 3rd on a passed ball. Lee Jong-wook
Lee Jong-wook
-Memorial award:The South Korean government officially announced the establishment of the a Memorial Prize in Dr. Lee's memory. After his death, You Si min, the Minister of Health and Welfare of the Republic of Korea, officially revealed the plans concerning the new awards and urged other nations...

 hit him home with a single. Doosan went ahead in the 6th, as Kim Dong-joo
Kim Dong-Joo
Kim Dong-Joo is a South Korean third baseman, who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

 hit a double, advanced on a sacrifice, then Ko Young-min
Ko Young-Min
Ko Young-Min is a South Korean second baseman who currently plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

 got a base on balls. Doosan used power hitter Jun-Seok Choi as a pinch hitter, and it paid off, as he hammered the ball, allowing Ko to score from first. Doosan added to their lead in the 7th, as Lee Jong-wook
Lee Jong-wook
-Memorial award:The South Korean government officially announced the establishment of the a Memorial Prize in Dr. Lee's memory. After his death, You Si min, the Minister of Health and Welfare of the Republic of Korea, officially revealed the plans concerning the new awards and urged other nations...

 scored with help from Oh Jae-Won and Ko Young-min
Ko Young-Min
Ko Young-Min is a South Korean second baseman who currently plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

. Hong Sung-heon
Hong Sung-Heon
Hong Sung-Heun is a South Korean designated hitter and first baseman for the Lotte Giants in the Korean Baseball Organization...

 shot a solo home run in the 9th, but it wasn't necessary. SK tried to fight back, but managed to only score one more run in the bottom of the 7th. A combination of Randal's pitching, as well as reliever Lee Jae-woo
Lee Jae-Woo
Lee Jae-Woo is a South Korean relief pitcher who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korean professional baseball league. In 2009, he played on the South Korean national team in the World Baseball Classic....

 shut down the Wyverns.

Game 2, October 27

Munhak Baseball Stadium
Munhak Baseball Stadium
Munhak Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Incheon, South Korea. It is the home stadium of SK Wyverns. The stadium holds 28,500 people and was built in 2001. It is adjacent to Incheon Munhak Stadium.- See also :...

, Incheon
Incheon
The Incheon Metropolitan City is located in northwestern South Korea. The city was home to just 4,700 people when Jemulpo port was built in 1883. Today 2.76 million people live in the city, making it Korea’s third most populous city after Seoul and Busan Metropolitan City...



SK evened the series with the aid of some strong batting and some poor defensive work by Doosan. The game was an almost total turn-around of game 1, with an identical score of 5-2. Just like last year, SK started Chae Byeong-Yong,while Doosan started former major-leaguer Sunny Kim

The game began well for SK as lead-off hitter Jeong Keun-woo
Jeong Keun-Woo
Jeong Keun-Woo is a second baseman and shortstop who currently plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization. He bats and throws right-handed.-Amateur career:...

 got onto base and advanced with a narrow hit by Park Jae-Hong
Park Jae-Hong (baseball)
Park Jae-Hong is a South Korean outfielder who currently plays for SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization. Park is currently considered one of the best five-tool players in the KBO league...

. Lee Jin-Young
Lee Jin-Young
Lee Jin-Young is a South Korean right fielder who plays for the LG Twins in the Korea Baseball Organization. He bats and throws left-handed.-Amateur career:...

 hit Jeong home, and Park scored after the pitcher threw a wild pitch. Doosan responded in the fourth with a double from Kim Dong-joo
Kim Dong-Joo
Kim Dong-Joo is a South Korean third baseman, who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

, then a triple from Hong Sung-heon
Hong Sung-Heon
Hong Sung-Heun is a South Korean designated hitter and first baseman for the Lotte Giants in the Korean Baseball Organization...

. Ko Young-min
Ko Young-Min
Ko Young-Min is a South Korean second baseman who currently plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

 hit a sacrifice fly to bring in the 2nd run. The game winner was in the 5th by Park Jae-Sang
Park Jae-Sang
Park Jae-Sang is a South Korean left-handed left fielder who plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization.-External links:...

, and in the 7th, Kim Jae-Hyeon hit another home run (2 runs), for his second in the series and 2nd in 2 days.

Game 3, October 29

Jamsil Baseball Stadium
Jamsil Baseball Stadium
Jamsil Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Jamsil 1-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, South Korea. The stadium holds 30,265 people and was built from April 1980 to July 1982. It makes up the Jamsil Sports Complex along with the nearby Seoul Olympic Stadium, and hosted the baseball events during the...

, Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...



Doosan returned home to their stadium in Jamsil with the series tied at 1-1 series. Doosan started left-handed Lee Hei-chun
Lee Hei-Chun
Lee Hei-Chun is a South Korean left-handed relief pitcher who plays for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows.-References:*...

, and SK answered by starting Lee Jae-Won in the place of the designated hitter, as he had a higher hitting average against left-handed pitchers. SK started Kenny Rayburn.

The game started off as a pitcher's duel, with both pitchers scoring several strike-outs each, more notably Lee. Both teams struck in the 4th inning, putting 1 run on the board each. SK went ahead 3-1 in the 6th, as young 3rd baseman Choi Jeong
Choi Jeong
Choi Jeong is a third baseman who plays for the SK Wyverns in Korean professional baseball league.-Amateur career:...

 hit a 2 run home run on the first pitch of reliever Lee Jae-woo
Lee Jae-Woo
Lee Jae-Woo is a South Korean relief pitcher who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korean professional baseball league. In 2009, he played on the South Korean national team in the World Baseball Classic....

. Doosan answered back with a solo home run from relief catcher Choi Seung-Hwan in the 7th, but SK held onto their 1 run lead to close the game up and take a 2-1 lead in the series.

Doosan very nearly came back in the 9th inning, as closer Chong Tae-hyon
Chong Tae-Hyon
Tae-Hyon Chong is a South Korean professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He bats and throws right-handed...

 loaded the bases with 1 out, but Kim Hyun-soo
Kim Hyun-Soo
Kim Hyun-Soo is a Korean name. It's surname is Kim , and the given name is Hyun-Soo . It has usually used as an unisex name. It also spelled Kim Hyun-Su or Kim Hyeon-Soo or Kim Hyeon-Su.- People with the given name Kim Hyun-soo :...

 hit into a double-play, allowing SK to take the win and giving Chong the save.

Game 4, October 30

Jamsil Baseball Stadium
Jamsil Baseball Stadium
Jamsil Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Jamsil 1-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, South Korea. The stadium holds 30,265 people and was built from April 1980 to July 1982. It makes up the Jamsil Sports Complex along with the nearby Seoul Olympic Stadium, and hosted the baseball events during the...

, Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...



Game 4 saw the return of Matt Randal for Doosan, while SK started sometimes-reliable Song Eun-beom in classic Kim Sung-keun strategy of fast and frequent pitcher changing. SK used 7 pitchers in total, while Doosan used only 3.

Sk struck in the 1st inning with a hit from Park Jae-sang
Park Jae-Sang
Park Jae-Sang is a South Korean left-handed left fielder who plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization.-External links:...

, stole to 2nd, and made it to 3rd after an error from Chae Sang-byung
Chae Sang-Byung
Chae Sang-Byung is a South Korean catcher who plays for the Samsung Lions in the Korea Baseball Organization.-Amateur career :Chae attended Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea...

. Kim Jae-hyeon sacrificed to bring him home. Doosan struck back with the dangerous combination of Kim Dong-joo
Kim Dong-Joo
Kim Dong-Joo is a South Korean third baseman, who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

 and Hong Sung-heon
Hong Sung-Heon
Hong Sung-Heun is a South Korean designated hitter and first baseman for the Lotte Giants in the Korean Baseball Organization...

. Oh Jae-won hit into a double-play, but Kim scored from 3rd base.

Game 4 continued a Doosan trend in the series of Doosan creating many scoring opportunities but failing to capitalize on them. Jeon Sang-ryeol managed to hit a lead-off double in the 3rd, but made a critical error. Lee Jong-wook
Lee Jong-wook (baseball)
Lee Jong-wook is a South Korean outfielder who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korean professional baseball league.- Professional career :...

 hit a ball just behind the 2nd base that surely looked to be a hit, but some amazing defense from Jeong Keun-woo
Jeong Keun-Woo
Jeong Keun-Woo is a second baseman and shortstop who currently plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization. He bats and throws right-handed.-Amateur career:...

 managed to catch the ball, and merely had to throw the ball to 2nd to tag out Jeon, who ran and never looked back. Also, Doosan managed to load the bases with 0 outs in the 7th, but once again failed to score as reliever Lee Seung-ho
Lee Seung-Ho
Lee Seung-Ho is a South Korean baseball relief pitcher for the Lotte Giants in the Korean Baseball Organization...

 struck out 2 Doosan hitters, walked the next one, but the 4th one grounded out.

SK decided to use Chae Byeong-yong as a closer in game 5, and he managed to hold on to the victory, giving him a rare save. He loaded the bases in the 8th, but struck out pinch-hitter Yoo Jae-woong. Doosan managed to get 1 runner to 2nd base in the 9th, but could not get any closer to scoring. SK went up 3-1, only one win away from claiming their 2nd consecutive Korean Series
Korean Series
The Korean Series is the championship series of the Korea Baseball Organization. It has been held since the KBO's first season in and is the final series of in the post-season play-offs. From , the winner of the Korean Series goes on to play in the Asia Series....

 victory.

Game 5, October 31

Jamsil Baseball Stadium
Jamsil Baseball Stadium
Jamsil Baseball Stadium is a baseball stadium in Jamsil 1-dong, Songpa-gu, Seoul, South Korea. The stadium holds 30,265 people and was built from April 1980 to July 1982. It makes up the Jamsil Sports Complex along with the nearby Seoul Olympic Stadium, and hosted the baseball events during the...

, Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...



Game 5 was yet another pitcher's duel, this time between Kim Kwang-hyun
Kim Kwang-Hyun
Kim Kwang-Hyun is a South Korean left-handed starting pitcher who plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization.-Amateur career:...

 and Kim Sun-woo, both vying for a win in this year's series. It was do or die for Doosan, and neither team allowed any runs until the 7th inning.

Doosan had scoring opportunities almost every inning, but failed. However, SK rarely was able to get runners on base, shut down by the superb pitching of Kim Sun-woo. A reversal of fortunes came about in the 7th inning, as Sk was able to load the bases. Catcher Park Kyung-oan
Park Kyung-Oan
Park Kyung-Wan is a South Korean baseball catcher who currently plays for SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization and Olympic bronze medalist.-1998-2002:...

, who has hitless in the series, hammered a linedrive towards 3rd, hurting Kim Dong-joo
Kim Dong-Joo
Kim Dong-Joo is a South Korean third baseman, who plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

's hand, and causing him to drop the ball. Sk would add one more to the scoreboard in the 8th, as Park Jae-Sang
Park Jae-Sang
Park Jae-Sang is a South Korean left-handed left fielder who plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization.-External links:...

 hit a single, and came home with a hit from Choi Jeong
Choi Jeong
Choi Jeong is a third baseman who plays for the SK Wyverns in Korean professional baseball league.-Amateur career:...

.

SK starter Kim Kwang-hyun
Kim Kwang-Hyun
Kim Kwang-Hyun is a South Korean left-handed starting pitcher who plays for the SK Wyverns in the Korea Baseball Organization.-Amateur career:...

 allowed 0 runs in 6 1/3 innings, and was followed by 4 relievers in an attempt to shut down the hungry and now desperate Doosan hitters.

Doosan once again got multiple runners on base in the 8th, but failed to score as Sk outfielder Cho Dong-hwa made an amazing catch against Hong Sung-heon
Hong Sung-Heon
Hong Sung-Heun is a South Korean designated hitter and first baseman for the Lotte Giants in the Korean Baseball Organization...

. Once again reliever Lee Seung-ho
Lee Seung-Ho
Lee Seung-Ho is a South Korean baseball relief pitcher for the Lotte Giants in the Korean Baseball Organization...

 saved the team, striking out Yoo Jae-woong. This performance earned Lee the MVP nomination, but he did not win.

The 9th inning was the most pivotal moment of the game, as Doosan had the game but failed completely to capitalize on the situation. Once again, SK put Chae Byeong-yong on the mound as a closer. Doosan managed to load the bases with 0 outs. It looked like a Doosan comeback was inevitable. Amazingly, Chae put away Ko Young-min
Ko Young-Min
Ko Young-Min is a South Korean second baseman who currently plays for the Doosan Bears in the Korea Baseball Organization...

 and Kim Hyun-soo
Kim Hyun-Soo
Kim Hyun-Soo is a Korean name. It's surname is Kim , and the given name is Hyun-Soo . It has usually used as an unisex name. It also spelled Kim Hyun-Su or Kim Hyeon-Soo or Kim Hyeon-Su.- People with the given name Kim Hyun-soo :...

 hit into a double-play, handing SK their 2nd consecutive Korean Series
Korean Series
The Korean Series is the championship series of the Korea Baseball Organization. It has been held since the KBO's first season in and is the final series of in the post-season play-offs. From , the winner of the Korean Series goes on to play in the Asia Series....

 victory.

21 year-old third baseman
Third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...

 Choi Jeong
Choi Jeong
Choi Jeong is a third baseman who plays for the SK Wyverns in Korean professional baseball league.-Amateur career:...

 was named the series MVP.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK