KT’s rise from the bottom of the table two months ago is frightening. They swept the SSG three-game series and have won six straight games. KT head coach Lee Kang-cheol, who was troubled by the early slump, has a wide smile on his face. His voice is full of confidence.

“We’re at full strength now,” he told reporters before the game against Doosan in Jamsil on Thursday. We can play against any team,” he said. His confidence is well-founded. KT has recently played LG, NC, and SSG. LG and SSG are 1-2 in the league, and NC is also a strong contender for the top three. KT has an 8-1 record against them. They only lost one game to LG.

The driving force behind the upswing is the starting pitching. During the six-game winning streak, KT starters have given up six runs in 40.1 innings for a 1.34 ERA. The pitches are good. No unnecessary walks. With less time on defense, the hitters are naturally more focused.

“We’ve been thinking a lot about the middle of the order, but the starters are on their own. We haven’t talked about it,” Lee laughed. When he was asked if he was worried about “ruining the flow” because everyone was pitching so well, he replied, “Why not focus more?

Another player Lee singled out was second baseman Lee Ho-yeon. He came over from Lotte in May in a trade for left-hander Shim Jae-min. Since joining KT, Lee has been batting .328. As a right-handed hitter, he has many uses beyond his performance. “It’s great that he got a left-handed bat, because (Kim) Min-hyuk only had one,” Lee said.먹튀검증

KT has also benefited from Lee’s physical strength and competition from other second basemen such as Park Kyung-soo and Oh Yoon-seok. “Whoever plays second base, they all hit well,” Lee said. It’s completely competitive,” Lee laughed.