It’s a textbook pitching streak for an ‘ace’. Ko adds another Quality Start+ (QS+, 7 innings or less in a start).
KT Wiz pitcher Young-pyo Ko threw seven innings of six-hit, five-strikeout, one-walk baseball against the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Stadium in Seoul on Saturday.
The Doosan offense, which had scored seven runs in the previous game on the fifth, found it difficult to get going against Ko. Ko continued to pitch cleanly until the seventh inning.
With one out in the bottom of the first, he gave up the first hit to second baseman Kim Jae-ho, but retired Jose Rojas and Kim Jae-hwan on an outfield fly and a strikeout, respectively. After giving up a double to Yang Seok-hwan in the second inning, Ko worked himself out of trouble by getting back-to-back strikeouts, utilizing his changeup perfectly.
In the third inning, he gave up an infield single to Jung Soo-bin with one out. With his quick feet, he quickly reached first base after shortstop Kim Sang-soo fumbled the ball. He then stole second base. However, Ko Young-pyo caught an infield fly against Kim Jae-ho, and Rojas retired the side on a grounder to first base.
After striking out the center field trio of Kim Jae-hwan, Kim In-tae, and Yang Seok-hwan in the fourth inning, Ko gave up a leadoff single and a stolen base to Kang Seung-ho in the fifth. It was perfect crisis management.
The first run came in the sixth. He gave up a double to Rojas and had the bases loaded with two outs, but a wild pitch gave up a run. It was a 2-0 KT lead and a 2-1 deficit, but once again, Ko got out of the inning without allowing another run.
Young-pyo Ko, who had been pitching flawlessly, took the mound in the seventh inning. He reached 90 pitches and was in trouble. After a nine-pitch battle with Kang Seung-ho, he gave up a walk, and with two outs, Heo Kyung-min singled again. Coach Lee Kang-cheol personally went to the mound and asked for Ko Young-pyo’s opinion, but Ko showed his willingness to keep pitching and eventually retired Jung Soo-bin on a fly to left field to end the seventh inning and give his team a 3-1 lead.
Go earned the win as KT held on to the lead until the end. It was his 10th win of the season. It was the third consecutive year of double-digit wins since the 20221 season. At the same time, the team showed off a great pace, with 10 consecutive QS and 5 consecutive QS+ games. He earned QS+ against the top LG, against the bottom Kiwoom, and against mid-tier teams equally.
The last time Ko failed to complete six innings was on May 30 against the KIA (2 innings, 3 runs, 2 earned). He left the mound early due to back soreness at the time. In his 20 starts this season, Young-pyo has allowed five or more runs only twice and has 16 QS. That’s the most in the league.토토사이트
Continuing to pitch in the textbook fashion of an ‘ace’, Ko is currently the fastest pitcher in the entire league. Based on his recent performance alone, he’s even better than Eric Peddy (NC), who was considered the “top dog. It’s no exaggeration to say that Ko is leading KT’s rise from the bottom to the center of the third-place race.