KT WIZ Submarine pitcher Ko Young-pyo has only nine strikeouts this season.
In 18 games and 110⅔ innings pitched in the three-month period from April through July, that’s less than one walk every two games.
That’s less than half of the second-place finisher, Raul Alcantara (20 – Dusan Bears), who has the fewest among pitchers who have pitched in regulation innings.
In his first game of August, he pitched a no-hitter against the Suwon SSG Landers on August 1.
He pitched eight innings of six-hit ball with four strikeouts and no walks to help the team win its fourth straight game.
He was accurate and aggressive with his pitches, as evidenced by his 76% strikeout rate (75 strikes, 22 balls).
Despite allowing four doubles, he didn’t walk a batter and earned a quality start plus (7+ innings, 3 earned runs or less).
After the game, Ko, who improved to 9-5 on the season, explained his pitching style, saying, “If you give up a walk, your pitch count goes up meaninglessly,” and that he tries to keep the ball in the strike zone and engage hitters quickly.
“So even if you have runners on base, you have to throw fewer pitches per inning,” he said. “Basically, you can go six innings, and if you’re efficient, you can go seven or eight innings.”
He said he’s not a hard-throwing pitcher, so he’s more concerned with the movement of his pitches and his delivery.
On this day, Ko’s fastball was measured between 134 and 141 kilometers per hour, and his changeup was measured between 113 and 122 kilometers per hour.
“I think the fastball is a game pitch from the beginning, because if I throw it without power, it can be easier to hit,” he said. “If I throw it too far to the corner, there is a high probability that it will be a ball, so I start throwing it from the center of the zone. When I’m feeling good, I’m getting into a better rhythm and throwing to the corners.”
He was expected to pitch a complete game, but due to the heat, he did not pitch the ninth inning.
“In the eighth inning, I couldn’t concentrate on 토토사이트 facing Shin-soo Choo. It was the first time I felt the heat on the mound,” he said, adding, “I signed to the bench (after the double by Choo), but they said, ‘The next pitcher is not ready,’ so I said I would pitch this inning.”
KT has been on a winning streak over the past two months (28-14, .667 winning percentage), climbing from last to fifth place. The win was a great start to August.
“Having fewer ups and downs was the secret to KT’s rise,” said Ko Young-pyo, reflecting on the team’s ability to come back from a minus-14 (win-loss differential).