The 2017 Korean Series was the championship series of the 2017 KBO League season. The

Kia Tigers Kia Tigers ( ko, KIA 타이거즈) are a South Korean professional baseball team founded in 1982 and based in the southwestern city of Gwangju. Until 2001, they were known as the Haitai Tigers. The Tigers are a members of the KBO League and are ...

, as the regular season champions, automatically advanced to the Korean Series. They played the winner of the playoff series, the

Doosan Bears The Doosan Bears ( ko, 두산 베어스) are a South Korean professional baseball team based in Seoul. Founded in 1982, they are a member of the KBO League. The Bears have won six Korean Series titles (1982, 1995, 2001, 2015, 2016, and 2019) and ...

, who had defeated the NC Dinos in the playoff. Kia won the

best-of-seven There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the ''single elimination'', the ''best-of-'' series, the ''total points series'' more commonly ...

series, 4–1.

Yang Hyeon-jong Yang Hyeon-jong (Hangul: 양현종, Hanja: 梁玹種) (born March 1, 1988) is a Korean professional baseball pitcher for the Kia Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO). He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas ...

was named the series'

most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a partic ...

Summary

Matchups

Game 1

Moon Jae-in Moon Jae-in (; ; born 24 January 1953) is a South Korean former politician, civil servant and lawyer who served as the 12th president of South Korea between 2017 and 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs an ...

, the

President of South Korea The president of the Republic of Korea (), also known as the president of South Korea (often abbreviated to POTROK or POSK; ), is the head of state and head of government of the Republic of Korea. The president leads the State Council, and ...

, threw the

ceremonial first pitch The ceremonial first pitch is a longstanding ritual of baseball in which a guest of honor throws a ball to mark the end of pregame festivities and the start of the game. Originally, the guest threw a ball from their seat in the grandstand to ...

Dustin Nippert Dustin David Nippert (born May 6, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball, and the Doosan Bears and KT Wiz of the KBO League. Nippert won the K ...

started Game 1 for Doosan and Héctor Noesí started for Kia.

Oh Jae-won Oh Jae-won (born February 9, 1985) is a retired South Korean professional baseball infielder who spent his entire career with the Doosan Bears of the KBO League. He graduated from Yatap High School and was selected by the Doosan Bears in a 200 ...

drew a

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ' inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ...

with the

bases loaded B backdoor breaking ball :A breaking pitch, usually a slider, curveball, or cut fastball that, due to its lateral motion, passes through a small part of the strike zone on the outside edge of the plate after seeming as if it would miss the p ...

in the fourth inning to score Doosan's first run. In the fifth inning, Park Kun-woo hit a

run batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

(RBI) single, and Kim Jae-hwan and Oh Jae-il hit back-to-back

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

s for Doosan in the fifth inning. In their half of the fifth inning,

Roger Bernadina Rogearvin Argelo "Roger" Bernadina (born June 12, 1984) is a Dutch Curaçaoan professional baseball outfielder for Curaçao Neptunus of the Honkbal Hoofdklasse. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, Philadelphi ...

hit a three-run home run for Kia, and Doosan held on to win 5–3.

Game 2

started Game 2 for the Tigers, while

Chang Won-jun Chang Won-jun ( Hangul: 장원준, Hanja: 張元準; born July 31, 1985) is a South Korean pitcher for the Doosan Bears of the KBO League. Professional career He joined the Lotte Giants in the first draft in 2004, and played for the team bet ...

started for the Bears. Yang threw a

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

, allowing four

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014 - a British compilation album s ...

and recording 11

strikeout In baseball or softball, a strikeout (or strike-out) occurs when a batter accumulates three strikes during a time at bat. It usually means that the batter is out. A strikeout is a statistic recorded for both pitchers and batters, and is den ...

s. Kim Joo-chan scored the game's only run in the eighth inning after hitting a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

Game 3

Pat Dean threw seven innings for Kia. He pitched aggressively, inducing weak contact from Doosan's hitters. Lee Myung-ki hit an RBI

in the third inning to give Kia a 1-0 lead, and

An Chi-hong An Chi-hong ( Hangul: 안치홍, Hanja: 安致弘) (born July 2, 1990) is a South Korean infielder who plays for the Lotte Giants of the KBO League. He bats and throws right-handed. Amateur career While attending Seoul High School in Seoul, ...

hit a two RBI single in the fourth inning to increase the lead to 3-0. The Bears scored in the bottom of the fourth inning with a

sacrifice fly In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d): "Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair o ...

by Yang Eui-ji, but the Tigers scored again in the fifth inning with an RBI single by Bernadina. Nick Evans hit a home run for the Bears in the seventh inning and Kim Jae-hwan had an RBI for the Bears in the eighth inning to narrow the score to 4-3.

Na Ji-wan Na Jiwan (, born May 19, 1985) is a South Korean former professional baseball outfielder. From 2008 to 2022, he played for the Kia Tigers of the KBO League. He batted and threw right-handed. Amateur career While attending Shinil Junior High Sc ...

entered the game as a

pinch hitter In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead (not in active play); the manager may use any player who has not yet entered the game as a substitute. Unlike basketball, America ...

for Kia in the ninth inning, and hit a two-run home run.

Game 4

Im Gi-yeong started for the Tigers, and

Yoo Hee-kwan Yoo Hee-kwan (Hangul: 유희관, Hanja: 柳熙寬) (born June 1, 1986 in Seoul) is a South Korean starting pitcher for the Doosan Bears of the KBO League. He bats and throws left-handed. Professional career Yoo started his career with the Do ...

started for the Bears. Bernadina hit an RBI

triple Triple is used in several contexts to mean "threefold" or a " treble": Sports * Triple (baseball), a three-base hit * A basketball three-point field goal * A figure skating jump with three rotations * In bowling terms, three strikes in a row * ...

in the first inning for Kia, and scored on a single by Choi Hyung-woo. The Tigers scored two more runs in the seventh inning. The Bears scored a run in the eighth inning, but Kia scored a run in the top of the ninth inning. Kim Se-hyun earned his second save of the series for the Tigers, pitching the final innings.

Game 5

Game 5 was a rematch of Game 1's starting pitchers, Noesí for Kia and Nippert for Doosan.

Lee Bum-ho Lee Bum-ho (; Hanja: 李杋浩; born November 25, 1981) is a South Korean former third baseman who played primarily in the KBO League. He bats and throws right-handed. Lee is considered one of the best defensive third basemen in the KBO league ...

hit a grand slam for Kia off of Nippert in the third inning. Yang Hyeon-jong earned the save, pitching out of a

situation in the ninth inning. Kia won their first Korean Series since 2009. Yang won the Korean Series

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a partic ...

Award.

References

{{Doosan Bears Korean Series Doosan Bears Kia Tigers

Korean Series The Korean Series is the final championship series of the KBO League. It has been held since the KBO League's first season in and is the final series of the post-season play-offs. From to 2013, the winner of the Korean Series went on to play in ...