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          KBO Weekly: Latest Power Rankings and the end of a streak for the ages

          • ESPN.com
          Jun 15, 2020, 11:00 AM

          This is a big week for KBO Weekly. We saw a team that lost 18 consecutive games, matching the longest losing streak in Korea Baseball Organization history, win two games in one day. And, for the first time in their long and illustrious history, the ESPN KBO Power Rankings match the league standings exactly.

          Here's a look at the week that was and what's ahead in the KBO.

          ESPN's KBO Power Rankings

          1. NC Dinos: 26-9 (Last week: 1) -- NC holds solid at No. 1 after winning two of three against Doosan and dropping two of three to Kiwoom. The bashing Dinos had their KBO-best 15th multihomer game Sunday; they are 15-0 in those affairs.

          2. LG Twins: 22-13 (2) -- The Twins picked up a game on NC but have to be concerned about the health of slugger Roberto Ramos, who missed this weekend's action with ankle and back pain. Ramos hit his league-leading 13th homer Thursday.

          3. Doosan Bears: 21-14 (3) -- Losing two of three to the first-place Dinos is one thing. Dropping two of three to the last-place Eagles? Ugh. The Bears' back-to-back losses to Hanwha marked the first time they'd lost two in a row all season.

          4. Kiwoom Heroes: 20-16 (4) -- The Heroes have to feel good about their two wins over the Dinos: a 3-2, 10-inning victory Friday, when they faced KBO's top pitcher, Chang-mo Koo (7 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, no-decision), followed by an 18-5 drubbing that was NC's worst loss of the season.

          5. Kia Tigers: 19-17 (5) -- Kia's Preston Tucker has hit in 12 of his past 13 games (17-for-48, .354).

          6. Lotte Giants: 18-17 (6) -- The Giants had won six straight before losing two of three to LG over the weekend. Dan Straily, who played eight MLB seasons, has allowed two earned runs over his past 25⅔ innings, lowering his ERA to 1.99.

          7. Samsung Lions: 17-19 (8) -- The Lions have shown slow but steady improvement, largely behind their starting pitchers. Samsung has a league-best six shutout wins, including Sunday's against the Wiz, when Tae-in Won threw six innings. He has allowed no earned runs in three of his past four starts.

          8. KT Wiz: 13-22 (7) -- KT has been unspectacular, but the same can't be said of Mel Rojas Jr., who homered in both games of a doubleheader Saturday. Rojas leads KBO with 36 RBIs, is second in home runs (12) and third in batting average (.383) and OPS (1.126).

          9. SK Wyverns: 12-23 (9) -- With two home runs Sunday, Choi Jeong of the Wyverns climbed to fourth on the all-time list with 339. Next up: Jong-hoon Chang at 340. Lee Seung-yuop is No. 1 with 467.

          10. Hanwha Eagles: 9-27 (10) -- On Sunday, Hanwha not only snapped its record-tying 18-game losing streak by winning the resumption of Saturday's game against Doosan that was suspended in the third inning due to rain, it won the regularly scheduled game as well. Now the red-hot Eagles have the longest active winning streak in the league at two.

          (Selected by Joon Lee, Alden Gonzalez and Dan Mullen)

          The week that was and what's ahead

          One thing to know that happened last week: When Hanwha's Tae-hyung No, a 25-year-old rookie, rapped a ninth-inning walk-off single Sunday, the Eagles and their fans -- indeed all of KBO -- rejoiced and breathed a sigh of relief. And add this to the list of differences between KBO and MLB: After breaking their 18-game losing streak, the Eagles apologized in a statement on their website.

          "Despite your loyal and unwavering support, our performance on the field has been a disappointment and we would like to apologize to all Eagles fans," the statement read. "Even though we finally ended the slide today, we are extremely sorry that we haven't lived up to our fans' expectations."

          A few ugly numbers the Eagles can now put behind them:

          • Hanwha lost all 18 games by multiple runs (the only MLB team to match that mark is the 1876 Cincinnati Reds)

          • The Eagles were outscored by an average of 6 runs per game

          • They led in just five of the 18 games and never led in the seventh inning or later.

          One thing to watch this week: Can Hanwha keep it up? It won't be easy. The Eagles face the hot LG Twins in a three-game series that starts Tuesday, then meet the Dinos for three. Won-ho Choi had demoted 10 veterans to the minor leagues when he took over as Eagles manager a week ago to shake things up, but said many of the demoted players will rejoin Hanwha later this week. Under KBO rules, those sent to the minors must spend a minimum 10 days before coming back up.

          Highlight of the week:

          Bat flip of the week: Bat flips are not just for home runs in the KBO. Witness this beauty on a popup that barely clears the infield -- and the mayhem that ensues.

          Viral moment of the week: It seems former Phillies pitcher David Buchanan has become a go-to dugout target for KBO cameramen during lulls in the game.

          KBO on ESPN broadcast schedule

          Stream live KBO games and replays on the ESPN App

          (All times ET; in addition to the game replays listed, all KBO League games on ESPN2 will also re-air leading directly into the next live game telecast.)

          Tuesday

          5:30 a.m.: ESPN -- Lotte Giants vs. Kiwoom Heroes (live)
          2 p.m.: ESPN2 -- Lotte Giants vs. Kiwoom Heroes (rebroadcast)

          Wednesday

          5:30 a.m.: ESPN -- LG Twins vs. Hanwha Eagles (live)
          2 p.m.: ESPN2 -- LG Twins vs. Hanwha Eagles (rebroadcast)

          Thursday

          5:30 a.m.: ESPN -- KT Wiz vs. SK Wyverns (live)
          1 p.m.: ESPN2 -- KT Wiz vs. SK Wyverns (rebroadcast)

          Friday

          5:30 a.m.: ESPN -- Doosan Bears vs. LG Twins (live)
          2 p.m.: ESPN2 -- Doosan Bears vs. LG Twins (rebroadcast)

          Saturday

          4 a.m.: ESPN -- Doosan Bears vs. LG Twins (live)

          Sunday

          4 a.m.: ESPN -- Doosan Bears vs. LG Twins (live)