Can Fedde redeem himself against KIA? Samsung's rotation under the spotlight

Samsung Lions foreign starter Chris Fedde, who lost both of his regular-season starts against the KIA Tigers, is looking to turn the tables on the postseason stage. After throwing four scoreless innings in a recent intrasquad game, all eyes are on whether Fedde can deliver a different result against KIA's lineup.

Samsung, which finished second in the regular season and advanced directly to the playoff round, will face KIA in Game 1 of the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO Postseason playoff Sunday at Daegu Samsung Lions Park. KIA advanced by sweeping the LG Twins in three straight games in the wild-card round.

Fedde made two starts against KIA during the regular season, going 0-2 with a 5.25 ERA. He allowed nine runs over 12 innings, though only seven were earned.

In the first matchup on July 30, he was knocked around for six runs on six hits and two home runs over five innings. Kim Tae-gun hit a three-run homer in the second inning, and Kim Do-young added a solo shot in the third. The second start, on Aug. 11, was a much better outing — seven innings, four hits, three walks, nine strikeouts and three runs allowed (one earned) — a quality start-plus performance. But he received no run support and took the loss again.

Kim Tae-gun proved particularly troublesome across both games, going 2-for-3 with a home run and six RBIs against Fedde. In the first game he hit the three-run homer, and in the second he drove in all three of KIA's runs with a two-RBI double and a sacrifice fly.

Pitch selection will also be a key factor in the rematch. Samsung Manager Park Jin-man assessed after the first KIA start that opposing batters had studied and prepared for Fedde's existing pitch patterns. Fedde himself acknowledged the need to vary his pitch mix.

His most recent tune-up was encouraging. On Monday at Daegu Samsung Lions Park, Fedde started for the white team in an intrasquad game and threw four scoreless innings, tossing 62 pitches with a top velocity of 150.1 km/h.

He worked through a varied arsenal — 20 four-seamers, 13 cutters, 10 changeups, nine curveballs, seven two-seamers and three sweepers. Fedde had earlier missed time with back stiffness but returned in a start against the SSG Landers on Oct. 9 and followed that up with a steady performance in the intrasquad game.

Fedde joined Samsung in the second half of this season and went 7-3 with a 2.95 ERA over 13 starts. Aside from his two outings against KIA, he has been relatively consistent, giving Samsung reason for optimism heading into the postseason rematch.

Won Tae-in, the anchor of Samsung's domestic rotation, also had a rough outing against KIA. In a start on Aug. 13 in Gwangju, he was tagged for six runs on nine hits and two walks over 5⅔ innings. Samsung rallied for a 9-8 win on the strength of its offense, but Won exited without a decision.

Won made only one start against KIA in the regular season, however, making it difficult to conclude he has a particular weakness against them. In his most recent start — against the Hanwha Eagles on Oct. 1 — he bounced back with five innings of one-run ball, allowing six hits and two walks while striking out four.

Samsung's other foreign starter, Ariel Jurado, also impressed in Monday's intrasquad game, throwing five innings and allowing one run on 90 pitches, with a top velocity of 147.6 km/h.

Manager Park has said he plans to use Jurado, Fedde, Won and Choi Won-tae as his postseason rotation. Samsung will hold a second intrasquad game Friday for a final tune-up.

KIA put up 24 runs across three games in the wild-card round, showcasing a potent offense. Whether Fedde and Won — both of whom struggled against KIA in the regular season — can produce different results in the fall will be one of the central storylines of the playoff series.