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| 2020-11-16 15:38:16
Korean Series-managers
Managers bracing for long battle in S. Korean baseball championship series
By Yoo Jee-ho
SEOUL, Nov. 16 (Yonhap) -- The upcoming South Korean baseball championship round will be a chance at revenge for one team, and an opportunity for a second straight title for the other team.
Either way, managers for both sides expect a long, hard battle that could go the distance.
The NC Dinos and the Doosan Bears will square off in the Korean Series starting Tuesday at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul. The Dinos were the regular season champions and earned a bye to the Korean Series. The Bears, the 2019 champions playing in their sixth straight Korean Series, finished third in the regular season and won two rounds in the playoffs to reach this point.
The entire best-of-seven series will take place at the dome. With the postseason pushed back to mid-November after the coronavirus pandemic disrupted the start of the regular season, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) settled on the climate-controlled stadium as the neutral venue.
During the Korean Series media day on Monday, NC manager Lee Dong-wook said he was disappointed not to be able to play in front of home fans at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, some 400 kilometers southeast of Seoul. The best the Dinos can do is take the championship trophy home, Lee said.
"Playing in a neutral stadium is out of our control," said Lee, who predicted the series would go the full seven games. "Our job is to focus on trying to win ballgames."
This is the second Korean Series showdown between these clubs. In 2016, the Bears swept the Dinos in four straight games. Lee, who was a coach at the time, said he doesn't remember much about that Korean Series.
"I do recall that we let a winnable Game 1 slip away from us," Lee said of the 1-0 loss. "I think the pendulum swung the other way and never came back. This year, we'll try to take the first two games and keep the momentum on our side."
Lee said the Bears are an undeniably talented team, as attested by their sixth straight trip to the Korean Series. But Lee added, "In the Korean Series, luck also plays a huge part. We'll try to bring luck to our side."
Kim Tae-hyoung, the Bears' manager who's been in every Korean Series since 2015, said the Dinos are a much different and better team than four years ago. He predicted this year's series will go six games.
Kim is the first manager to reach six Korean Series in a row. He said it was "an honor" to be in this position but it also comes with the pressure to win.
But the Dinos may feel more of the heat as the regular season champions, Kim said.
"They are the top seed and we are the underdog this time," Kim said. "Psychologically, it's a bit easier on us. I think the pressure is probably on NC to also win the Korean Series after taking the regular season crown."
The Dinos won the season series 9-7. Kim said he was particularly wary of the Dinos' left-handed relievers, because the Bears usually fill their lineup with five or six left-handed batters.
As for his own team's strength, Kim said, "Experience is our biggest asset."
Lee said Doosan right-hander Chris Flexen could be the difference maker in the series. The American ace was named the MVP of the previous playoff series against the KT Wiz, after tossing 10 1/3 innings of two-run ball in two appearances. He struck out 11 in 7 1/3 innings in a Game 1 start and then fired three shutout innings in relief to pick up a save in the clinching Game 4.
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