League analysisSep 18 · 4:18
Asian Games deep dive
아시안게임 예측
Recorded on the eve of the baseball tournament in Aichi-Nagoya. The platform's tournament page follows Korea's games and the KBO players on the roster as the results come in.
Compiled 2026-10-01
Around the game
The rest of the platform is computed from the record book. This page is reported: the Asian Games tournament and the week's news, each item with the source it came from, linked to the pages that hold the numbers behind it.
2026-09-21 – 2026-09-27 · Okazaki and Toyohashi
XX Asian Games, Aichi-Nagoya 2026 — men's baseball
Eight teams in two groups of four, single round robin. The top two of each group go to the super round carrying their head-to-head result with them; the bottom two play for places. First and second in the super round meet for gold, third and fourth for bronze.
Gold medal game · Sept 27 · Toyohashi
Korea 3, Japan 1
Korea's fifth straight Asian Games gold and seventh overall.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0 |
| Korea | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 12 | 1 |
Kwak Bin started (6⅓ innings, one run); Jo Byeong-hyeon won it, Park Young-hyun saved it. Kim Do-yeong's grounder off the third baseman's glove put Korea ahead in the eighth, and Moon Bo-gyeong added one. Japan fielded amateurs. 12 hits to 7.
Final order
- 1Korea5–148:9
- 2Japan5–146:9
- 3Chinese Taipei4–243:14
- 4China2–431:43
- 5Philippines2–343:36
- 6Thailand2–319:58
- 7Palestine1–48:39
- 8Hong Kong1–416:46
Records count every game played, runs for and against beside them. The super round carried over group-stage meetings, so standings there are not just these games.
Gold medal game
- 27 SeptKorea3–1JapanToyohashi
Bronze medal game
- 27 SeptChinese Taipei5–1ChinaOkazaki
Super round
- 26 SeptKorea9–2ChinaToyohashi
Choi Min-seok the winning pitcher; started an hour late for rain.
- 26 SeptJapan7–3Chinese TaipeiOkazaki
- 25 SeptJapan5–0KoreaToyohashi
Four hits and three double plays. Korea's first Asian Games loss to Japan since Doha 2006.
- 25 SeptChinese Taipei9–1ChinaOkazaki
Placement round
- 26 SeptThailand1–0Palestine(10)Okazaki
- 26 SeptHong Kong7–5PhilippinesToyohashi
- 25 SeptPhilippines18–7Thailand(7)Okazaki
- 25 SeptPalestine7–2Hong KongToyohashi
Group B
- 23 SeptKorea18–1Thailand(5)Okazaki
Home runs for Park Jae-hyun, Moon Bo-gyeong and Park Joon-sun.
- 23 SeptChinese Taipei11–0Hong Kong(7)Toyohashi
- 22 SeptKorea13–0Hong Kong(7)Toyohashi
Hong Kong held without a hit. Home runs for Roh Si-hwan and Cho Hyung-woo.
- 22 SeptChinese Taipei15–0Thailand(6)Toyohashi
- 21 SeptKorea5–0Chinese TaipeiOkazaki
Kwak Bin: six no-hit, scoreless innings. Yoon Dong-hee homered.
- 21 SeptThailand10–7Hong KongOkazaki
Group A
- 23 SeptJapan7–0PhilippinesToyohashi
- 23 SeptChina9–1PalestineOkazaki
- 22 SeptChina15–8PhilippinesOkazaki
- 22 SeptJapan15–0Palestine(5)Okazaki
- 21 SeptPhilippines12–0Palestine(7)Toyohashi
- 21 SeptJapan11–3ChinaToyohashi
The roster
The KBO players who won it
Ryu Ji-hyun, formerly LG's manager, who took Korea to the quarterfinals of the 2026 WBC. Appointed in April. Twenty-four players: eleven pitchers, two catchers, seven infielders and four outfielders. Twenty-one had to be under 25, plus three wild cards aged 25–29; no more than three from any one KBO club. The league did not pause for the tournament.
Kwak Bin
Doosan · P
161.0 IP · 2.24 ERA · 5.27 WAR
Choi Min-seok
Doosan · P
146.3 IP · 3.20 ERA · 3.36 WAR
Park Joon-sun
Doosan · 2B
.302 · 16 HR · 2.95 WAR
Kim Do-yeong
KIA · 3B
.308 · 45 HR · 8.59 WAR
Park Jae-hyun
KIA · LF
.293 · 19 HR · 2.17 WAR
Sung Young-tak
KIA · P
57.0 IP · 3.47 ERA · 1.04 WAR
Bae Chan-seung
Samsung · P
44.0 IP · 2.25 ERA · 0.02 WAR
Kim Ji-chan
Samsung · CF
.315 · 0 HR · 2.66 WAR
Lee Jae-hyun
Samsung · SS
.222 · 17 HR · 1.81 WAR
Cho Hyung-woo
SSG · C
.268 · 8 HR · 1.54 WAR
Jung Joon-jae
SSG · 2B
.274 · 1 HR · 0.95 WAR
Cho Byeong-hyun
SSG · P
54.0 IP · 2.33 ERA · 1.18 WAR
Oh Won-seok
KT · P
100.0 IP · 5.58 ERA · 2.05 WAR
Park Young-hyun
KT · P
61.7 IP · 2.48 ERA · 1.13 WAR
So Hyung-joon
KT · P
131.3 IP · 3.15 ERA · 3.23 WAR
Choi Joon-yong
Lotte · P
60.7 IP · 3.71 ERA · 1.19 WAR
Kim Jin-uk
Lotte · P
144.3 IP · 4.12 ERA · 1.88 WAR
Yoon Dong-hee
Lotte · RF
.231 · 5 HR · -0.55 WAR
Moon Bo-gyeong
LG · 3B
.258 · 10 HR · 1.47 WAR
Kim Young-woo
LG · P
45.3 IP · 4.17 ERA · 0.93 WAR
Noh Si-hwancaptain
Hanwha · 3B
.283 · 29 HR · 4.33 WAR
Moon Hyun-bin
Hanwha · LF
.297 · 15 HR · 3.18 WAR
Kim Ju-won
NC · SS
.280 · 18 HR · 3.70 WAR
Kim Geon-hee
Kiwoom · C
.268 · 8 HR · 1.46 WAR
A Korean Asian Games gold medallist is exempt from military service. Sixteen of the twenty-four had not yet served; the other eight were already exempt — seven from the 2023 Hangzhou gold and Jo Byeong-hyeon from his Sangmu service. The single-tournament rule is being argued over again in the Korean press.
Analysis
The league without them
The KBO kept playing through the tournament. This is each club's record from 21 to 27 September next to its season before it, with the players it lost and their WAR this season.
| Club | Players away | WAR | Before | PCT | During | PCT | R/G during |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KIA Tigers | Kim Do-yeong, Park Jae-hyun, Sung Young-tak | 11.80 | 71–57 | .555 | 1–1 | .500 | 3.50 |
| Doosan Bears | Kwak Bin, Choi Min-seok, Park Joon-sun | 11.58 | 65–62 | .512 | 2–1 | .667 | 4.67 |
| Hanwha Eagles | Noh Si-hwan, Moon Hyun-bin | 7.52 | 54–72 | .429 | 1–4 | .200 | 4.00 |
| KT Wiz | Oh Won-seok, Park Young-hyun, So Hyung-joon | 6.41 | 78–47 | .624 | 3–2 | .600 | 5.40 |
| Samsung Lions | Bae Chan-seung, Kim Ji-chan, Lee Jae-hyun | 4.49 | 76–52 | .594 | 2–0 | 1.000 | 6.50 |
| NC Dinos | Kim Ju-won | 3.70 | 59–67 | .468 | 3–3 | .500 | 5.33 |
| SSG Landers | Cho Hyung-woo, Jung Joon-jae, Cho Byeong-hyun | 3.67 | 58–69 | .457 | 0–2 | .000 | 3.00 |
| Lotte Giants | Choi Joon-yong, Kim Jin-uk, Yoon Dong-hee | 2.53 | 56–71 | .441 | 3–1 | .750 | 6.00 |
| LG Twins | Moon Bo-gyeong, Kim Young-woo | 2.40 | 75–55 | .577 | 0–2 | .000 | 2.50 |
| Kiwoom Heroes | Kim Geon-hee | 1.46 | 45–85 | .346 | 2–1 | .667 | 7.00 |
Each club played 2–6 games in that week — far too few to say anything about its strength. A .500 club splits a handful of games unevenly most weeks by chance alone. What the table can show is whether the clubs that lost the most WAR did worse; read it as a question, not an answer.
Since 1994
Asian Games podiums
| Year | Host | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Aichi-Nagoya | Korea | Japan | Chinese Taipei |
| 2022 | Hangzhou (2023) | Korea | Chinese Taipei | Japan |
| 2018 | Jakarta-Palembang | Korea | Japan | Chinese Taipei |
| 2014 | Incheon | Korea | Chinese Taipei | Japan |
| 2010 | Guangzhou | Korea | Chinese Taipei | Japan |
| 2006 | Doha | Chinese Taipei | Japan | Korea |
| 2002 | Busan | Korea | Chinese Taipei | Japan |
| 1998 | Bangkok | Korea | Japan | Chinese Taipei |
| 1994 | Hiroshima | Japan | Korea | Chinese Taipei |
On the show
Sources: Wikipedia — Baseball at the 2026 Asian Games · WBSC Asia — schedule and results · WBSC — super round field · Yonhap — roster selection · Chosun — military exemptions · Maeil Business — the final
The last three weeks
Top stories in baseball
KBO first, then the majors, Japan and the international game. Every summary says only what its source says.
KBO1 Oct
A year after the Korean Series, Hanwha is ninth and its leadership under scrutiny
The 2025 runner-up is out of the postseason with a week left. Criticism is mounting on general manager Son Hyuk and manager Kim Kyung-moon after 58.5 billion won spent on outside free agents in three years.
KBO30 Sept
The postseason field is set: Doosan takes the last spot on a walk-off
Doosan beat NC 6–5 on Kang Seung-ho's bases-loaded infield single in the ninth to clinch fifth. KT, Samsung, LG, KIA and Doosan are in; NC, Lotte, SSG, Hanwha and Kiwoom are out.
KBO30 Sept
Regular season to end 12 October, with the wild card round from about the 14th
Eleven rained-out games were rescheduled, moving the finale to 12 October. KT and Samsung, first and second, close the season against each other on 11–12 October. A tie for first or fifth is settled by a one-game tiebreaker the day before the wild card round.
MLB30 Sept
MLB postseason under way: White Sox sweep Houston, Phillies force a Game 3
Chicago's sweep was its first postseason series win since 2005. The Yankees and Padres took their openers, and the Phillies beat Atlanta in ten to force a decider. The Rays, Guardians, Brewers and Dodgers have byes; the World Series is set to start 23 October.
MLB30 Sept
The Dodgers draw a club-record 4,034,219
An average of 49,805 a game. The Athletics, playing in Sacramento, drew 799,240 — about 9,867 a game, fewer than the KBO's least-attended club.
KBO29 Sept
Kim Do-yeong hits his 41st, a Tigers single-season record
Back from the Asian Games, Kim homered against KT in a 5–8 loss, passing the 40 Tracy Sanders hit for Haitai in 1999. He leads the league, ahead of LG's Austin Dean and KT's Sam Hilliard.
MLB28 Sept
Kim Ha-seong, Song Seong-moon and Kim Hye-seong are on postseason clubs, roster spots uncertain
Kim Ha-seong is with Atlanta, Song Seong-moon with San Diego in his first major-league season, and Kim Hye-seong with the Dodgers. Korean outlets reported that none of the three was assured a place on a postseason roster.
International27 Sept
Korea beats Japan 3–1 for a fifth straight Asian Games gold
Two days after a 5–0 loss to the same side, Ryu Ji-hyun's team won the final at Toyohashi with two runs in the eighth. Korea has won every Asian Games baseball title since Guangzhou 2010, though its hitting was criticised along the way.
International27 Sept
Sixteen gold medallists, Kim Do-yeong among them, earn military exemption
Sixteen of the twenty-four had not completed military service and are now exempt, including KIA's Kim Do-yeong and Hanwha's Moon Hyun-bin. The benefit has renewed the argument over whether one tournament should carry it.
KBO24 Sept
KT first to 80 wins for the first time in club history
A 3–2 win over NC took KT to 80–48–4 and a three-game lead over Samsung. Of the twenty-one clubs to reach 80 wins first in the single-league era, twenty finished first; the exception was SK in 2019.
MLB22 Sept
Lee Jung-hoo's season ends with a groin contusion
A foul ball against the Dodgers put the Giants outfielder on the injured list. He finishes at .276 with 10 home runs, 57 RBIs, 12 steals and a .724 OPS in 143 games.
NPB17 Sept
SoftBank clinches a third straight Pacific League pennant
A 7–1 win over Orix sealed it under Hiroki Kokubo — the franchise's first three in a row since the Nankai Hawks of 1964–66.
KBO12 Sept
Eleven million fans in a record-fast 626 games
Attendance reached 11,049,504, seventeen games sooner than last year. Nearly half of all games (298 of 626) sold out and 85.2% of seats were filled; Samsung led with 1,453,477 and seven clubs had passed a million.