LG Twins sweep All-Star positions

The LG Twins became only the second team in league history to be represented in all starting positions at an All-Star Game.

The Korea Baseball Organization announced on Monday the LG Twins will have all 11 starting players in the Western League: eight positions players, one starting pitcher, one relief pitcher and one designated hitter.

The Twins have joined the 2012 Lotte Giants as the only clubs to sweep all starting positions at the midsummer affair in the league’s 31-year history.

In the nine-team KBO, the Western League is made up of the Twins, the Kia Tigers, the Nexen Heroes, the Hanwha Eagles and the expansion NC Dinos.

The Eastern League features the remaining four clubs: the Samsung Lions, the SK Wyverns, the Doosan Bears and the Lotte Giants.

Bong Jung-keun, an ex-Major League Baseball pitcher and now the closer for the Twins, led all players with 1.17 million votes, becoming the first pitcher to lead All-Star fan voting.

This year’s All-Star Game will be held on July 19 in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province, about 370 kilometers southeast of Seoul.

It’s a neutral location with no KBO club, but the Lions, based in nearby Daegu, have played a few alternative home games in Pohang this season.

Based in Seoul, the Twins have long boasted one of the league’s most loyal fan bases. Through Sunday’s games, the Twins were in third place behind the Lions and the Heroes at 39-31, giving their frustrated fans hope of their first playoff appearance since 2002.

So far in 2013, the Twins lead all KBO teams with a little over 678,000 fans at their home, the 25,500-seat Jamsil Stadium. (Yonhap News)