Wes Benjamin hopes to repay Doosan fans as Bears face LG in KBO wild-card series

Wes Benjamin said he hopes to make Doosan Bears fans happy when the Seoul club faces LG Twins in the KBO wild-card round at Jamsil Baseball Stadium on Wednesday, October 14. The pitcher helped knock Doosan out of the same round while playing for KT Wiz two years ago. Now with the Bears, he is part of a team that must win twice against LG to advance.

Benjamin spoke to Yonhap News Agency at Jamsil on October 12, before Doosan’s final regular-season game. In an interview published October 13, he acknowledged the disappointment he had caused Bears supporters in 2024 and said he wanted a different outcome for them this fall. The series gives him a chance to contribute to Doosan’s postseason run, though whether he will pitch in a possible second game remains unknown.

Why Doosan needs two wins against LG

Doosan finished fifth in the 2026 standings and LG fourth. Under the wild-card format, the lower-seeded Bears need two consecutive victories to reach the next round. LG can advance with a win or a tie in either game. The opening game is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. local time Wednesday at Jamsil, the stadium shared by the Seoul rivals.

The regular-season results favor LG. The Twins won 11 of the clubs’ 16 meetings this year, while Doosan won four and one game ended in a tie. LG entered the wild-card round after a loss to Kia on October 12 left it in fourth place; according to Yonhap, the Twins had been chasing third place and a route past this opening round.

Benjamin’s path from KT to Doosan

On October 3, 2024, Benjamin pitched seven scoreless innings for KT in a 1-0 victory over Doosan in the second wild-card game. KT had already won the opener 4-0. The two results made it the first No. 5 seed to eliminate a No. 4 seed in the KBO wild-card round, according to Yonhap. Benjamin now faces the same two-win task from Doosan’s side.

Doosan brought Benjamin in during April 2026 as a short-term replacement for Chris Flexen, who was sidelined with a shoulder injury after two starts. The Bears subsequently released Flexen and gave Benjamin a full contract on July 2. Benjamin told Yonhap he was grateful for the opportunity and said his new teammates had treated him like family.

Across 24 starts this season, Benjamin recorded a 2.31 earned-run average in 132⅔ innings. Yonhap reported that he posted a 1.85 ERA across 11 starts after receiving his full contract on July 2. That stretch included an absence of about a month beginning in mid-August because of shoulder issues.

Pitching strengths and questions for the series

Doosan planned to start right-hander Gwak Been in Game 1, leaving Benjamin’s role later in the series unsettled. Gwak led the league with a 2.24 ERA and 197 strikeouts in 2026. Doosan also had the KBO’s lowest team ERA, at 3.86, and its starting rotation led the league with a 3.79 ERA. Those figures help explain Benjamin’s confidence in the Bears’ pitching, even with the extra win they require.

The bullpens offer another comparison. Yonhap reported a league-best 3.86 bullpen ERA for Doosan and a fifth-ranked 5.05 for LG. The Twins are without veteran reliever Kim Jin-sung, who is out for the season with a shoulder injury. Former All-Star closer Go Woo-suk is ineligible for postseason play because he was not on LG’s active roster by July 31.

Benjamin said he believed Doosan could overcome its underdog position through pitching and timely hitting, while recognizing the disadvantage built into the wild-card format. His remarks describe the Bears’ hopes, not a result: the games had yet to be played when the interview appeared. His 2024 outing explains why this return matters to supporters, but it cannot predict how he or Doosan will fare against LG.

The series is also set to be the rivals’ final postseason meeting at Jamsil Baseball Stadium. Opened in 1982, the ballpark is scheduled for demolition after the 2026 season to make way for a new domed venue, Yonhap reported. For Doosan, the immediate question is whether its pitching can deliver two wins there against a team that dominated their regular-season meetings.