Lions infielder Ryu Ji-hyuk savors 1st postseason homer vs. ex-team: 'It was incredible'

GWANGJU, Oct. 30 (Yonhap) -- Samsung Lions infielder Ryu Ji-hyuk will never be mistaken for a power hitter.

In 1,221 regular-season games over 15 years in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO), Ryu has hit just 23 home runs. And in 38 postseason games before Thursday night, Ryu had zero homers.

Ryu's breakthrough dinger came at an opportune time for his club. His two-run home run off Kia Tigers starter Keisho Shirakawa gave the Lions a 4-3 lead in the top of the fifth in Game 3 of the second round in the KBO postseason. Although the Lions gave up the tying run in the bottom sixth, they pulled ahead with two runs in the seventh for a 6-4 victory.

"I don't usually hit home runs. So even when I do connect for one, I always run hard out of the box because, honestly, I don't really know how it is supposed to feel to hit the ball out," Ryu said. "But today, for some reason, I knew I had hit one as soon as I made contact. So I didn't have to run fast from the start. I just looked toward my dugout to celebrate early."

And Ryu acted like he had done this before, slowly trotting around the bases.

"It was incredible," Ryu said with a smile. "I am just happy that I finally got to homer in a postseason game before my career ended."

Ryu played for the Tigers from 2020 to 2022, and has been with the Lions since 2023. The 32-year-old has been productive against his former team, especially this year. He batted .380 (19-for-50) with a homer, eight RBIs and five steals in 16 regular-season games against the Tigers. Those 19 hits were the most by any Samsung hitter against Kia this year.

Ryu, though, denied he gets extra motivated whenever he faces his former team.

"In the past, I used to try really hard to do well against the Tigers, but that approach sometimes backfired on me," Ryu said. "So I have changed my mindset, where I regard the Tigers as just another opponent. To me, they are just another playoff foe at this point."

Ryu and the Lions lost to these same Tigers in the 2024 Korean Series. While some Samsung players this week have talked about trying to get their revenge, Ryu said he was trying not to get caught up in that narrative.

"That was then, and this is now," Ryu said. "It would be a lie if I said I have completely forgotten about that Korean Series loss. But I am here to play in the postseason in the year 2026, and I never wanted to bring those feelings from two years ago into this series."