After losing the first and second games of the 2023 KBO League Playoffs (best-of-three series), KT escaped the cliff by winning the third game away from home. In order to turn the game around, KT played a ‘game-changing’ move. It was the early introduction of Game 1 starter William Cuevas. On the other hand, NC, who still had one game in hand, chose to go with the “fair play” method of using their scheduled homegrown starters rather than the gamble of pulling Pedi, who was the Game 1 starter, early. It will be interesting to see how the two managers’ conflicting choices will affect the playoffs.
After losing the first and second games at home in Suwon, KT manager Lee Kang-cheol, who rebounded to win the third game, will start Cuevas, who started the first game. Lee, who announced Cuevas as the starter for Game 4 after Game 3, said, “The decision to start Cuevas for Game 4 was not an impromptu one. After Game 1, I told him, ‘I’m going to pitch him in Game 4,’ and he was OK with it.”
Cuevas, who joined the KT roster in June as a substitute foreign player this season, has pitched in 18 regular-season games, going 12-0 with a 2.60 ERA. It is no exaggeration to say that Cuevas’ arrival played a crucial role in KT’s comeback from the bottom of the standings in late May to finish second in the regular season.굿모닝토토 주소
Cuevas, who had a 100 percent win percentage, suffered his first loss of the season in the first round of the playoffs on March 30, the most important game of the season, giving up seven runs (four earned) on six hits and two walks in three innings. As you can see from the three unearned runs, he didn’t get any help from his defense, but he was basically beaten up by the NC hitters.
Cuevas, who threw 75 pitches in Game 1, goes out on three days’ rest. It may seem like a bit of a stretch, but Cuevas is no stranger to pitching after a short break. Cuevas also pitched when KT won the 2021 regular season and Korean Series in a sweep. At the time, KT and Samsung had the same winning percentage in the regular season and had to use a “tiebreaker” to determine the top spot in the regular season. Manager Lee Kang-cheol chose Cuevas, who had only rested two days after throwing 108 pitches, to start the tiebreaker. Cuevas didn’t let up in his start against Won Tae-in, throwing 99 pitches over seven innings, giving up one hit and striking out eight to lead KT to victory. Thanks to Cuevas’ performance, KT advanced directly to the Korean Series.
His Game 4 start will be a lot less intense than his previous outing, and he’ll have an extra day of rest. If Cuevas can replicate his 2021 tie-breaking perfect game, KT can take Game 4 and push the series to Game 5 and hope for a reverse sweep.
NC manager Kang Myung-ho looks on in the fourth inning of the baseball game between the KT Wiz and the NC Dinos during the third round of the ‘2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO Postseason’ playoffs at Changwon NC Park in Changwon, Gyeongnam, on April 2. Yonhap News1
NC head coach Kang Myung-hyun was asked if he would use Pedi, who won the “Triple Crown” of wins (20), ERA (2.00), and strikeouts (209) in the regular season, in Game 4, but Kang opted for fifth-year starter Song Myung-ki. “I thought it would be unreasonable to pitch Pedi after only three days of rest, so I sent out Song Myung-ki,” Kang said after Game 3.
Manager Kang Myung-hyun encourages his players after their 3:2 victory in the second round of the baseball ‘2023 Shinhan Bank SOL KBO Postseason’ playoff game between KT Wiz and NC Dinos at Suwon KT Wiz Park in Jowon-dong, Jangan-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, on the afternoon of March 31. News1
It’s the right call for NC, which still has a one-game lead. If they catch Cuevas with the Song Myung-ki card and end the series in Game 4, they can use Pedi as a starting card in Game 1 of the Korean Series against LG. Even if you lose Game 4, you can use Pedi in Game 5. NC will have an advantage over KT in Game 5 because they will have five days off after Game 1.
Lee Kang-cheol, who is trailing in the series, took a gamble, while Kang Shin-ho, who is still ahead by one game, chose to use his pitching staff according to the order. It will be interesting to see how the two managers’ conflicting choices will affect the playoffs.