Samsung vs KT opened with a lineup question, not a settled catcher. One day before Korea Series Game 1, Park Jin-man said Kang Min-ho's condition had not changed much. The decision now sits on one more check before the opener.
Kang Min-ho and Game 1
Park said on the 2nd, "I checked again today (the 2nd), and it seems his condition has not changed much. Since he played every game of the Playoffs in a poor physical state, I think we need to confirm until tomorrow to decide whether he will play."
That puts Samsung in a narrow window before the first game of the Korea Series. Kang had started behind the plate through Game 5 of the Playoffs against KIA Tigers on the 1st, even though his side was bothering him.
Side pain, not a full swing
After Playoff Game 5, he said, "My side was not good, making it difficult to take a full swing," and added, "If I rest here just because it hurts, there is no guarantee that we will make it to the Korea Series again."
He reached 2,500 career games this year, the first player in KBO League history to do so, and he still does not have a championship ring. Samsung is chasing its first championship in 12 years, so the catcher decision is not a small one.
Samsung Lions lineup pressure
The uncertainty around Kang sits beside two other physical issues. Koo Ja-wook won his first batting title this year with a.371 batting average, 15 home runs, 102 RBIs, and an OPS of 1.039 in 114 regular season games, but he suffered a left hamstring injury late in the season and has had to work as a designated hitter.
Choi Hyeong-woo has also been pushed out of his usual role and into left field. Samsung used him there starting from Playoff Game 2 after the lineup managed only two hits in Playoff Game 1.
That leaves Samsung with less room to shuffle the order if Kang cannot go. The team already moved Won Tae-in to the bullpen after Kim Jae-yoon was injured, so the catcher spot now carries extra weight in a best-of-seven series.
For now, the practical answer is simple: Samsung will check Kang again and decide after that. Until then, the opener sits on one unresolved question for the club's battery and for the rest of the lineup built around it.
