This season’s two best foreign pitchers meet in the first round of the playoffs.
NC Dinos Eric Peddy, the first foreign pitcher to achieve the Triple Crown, and William Cuevas, the winning percentage leader with 12 wins, no losses, and a 100% winning percentage, will face off as starters in the first round of the playoffs to be held at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 30th.
With 20 wins, 6 losses, an ERA of 2.00, and 209 strikeouts, Peddie won three awards as a pitcher, including most wins, ERA, and strikeouts. The record of 20 wins and 200 strikeouts is only the 5th in history, and it has been 37 years since Seon Dong-yeol in 1986.
In history, there were only 4 cases in the KBO League where 20 wins and 200 strikeouts were achieved simultaneously, and all of them were in the 1980s. It can be said that Peddie performed unrivaled this year.
Such a Peddie failed to pitch in the wild card game and semi-playoffs. On the 16th, against the KIA Tigers, he was hit on the right forearm by Ko Jong-wook’s batted ball, and the aftermath made it difficult for him to pitch. Peddy pitched bullpen for the first time since his injury at SSG Landers Field in Incheon on the 22nd, when the first game of the semi-PO was held. NC coach Kang In-kwon announced Peddy as the starter for Game 3 ahead of Game 2 on the 23rd, but Peddy was uncomfortable after the second game. Ham expressed anxiety and went to the hospital for a checkup, and changed the starting pitcher for the third game to Tanner.
Peddy was prepared for the 4th game, but NC defeated SSG with 3 consecutive wins and confirmed advancement to the playoffs. Peddie was able to take four more days of rest and play in the first round of the playoffs.
Peddie pitched in 3 games against KT and recorded 1 win, 2 losses, and an average ERA of 2.65. His first meeting was held on April 13 at Changwon Gyeonggi, where he allowed 6 hits and 3 runs (1 earned) in 6 innings, but became the losing pitcher as the team lost 3 to 10.
On May 9, in Suwon, he gave up 7 hits (2 home runs) and 3 runs in 6 innings, but became the winning pitcher in a 16-4 victory. On August 13, in Suwon, he allowed 6 hits (1 home runs) and 3 runs (1 home run) in 5 innings. He committed self-incrimination and lost 0-4, becoming the losing pitcher. He hit two home runs, one by Kang Baek-ho and the other by Alford.
When Peddy was expected, KT coach Lee Kang-cheol was asked about the starting team for the first game, and he said, “We will go in order regardless of whether Peddy appears or who else appears.” This means that Cuevas will appear as the starter in the first game.
Cuevas is the ace among aces that Coach Lee, the coaching staff, and the players all trust.
He is a ‘winning pitcher’ who started in 2021 and took two days off before appearing in the first-place game against the Samsung Lions and leading the team to the regular season championship with 7 scoreless innings.
He was sidelined last year due to an elbow injury, but came back as a substitute this season and ranked first in winning percentage with 12 wins, no losses, and a 100% win rate, lifting the team to second place. His earned run average was also very good at 2.60.
In the 18 games he appeared in, KT recorded 14 wins and 4 losses. They only lost 3 games against LG and 1 game against SSG.
He appeared in only one game against NC. On June 30th, he led the Suwon game to a 3-2 victory with 5 hits and 2 runs in 6 innings.
His overall performance against NC was good, with 4 wins and 3 losses and an average ERA of 3.38 in 11 games.
Cuevas pitched well in his postseason as well. In Game 3 of the playoffs against Doosan in 2020, he started and became the winning pitcher with 3 hits and 1 run in 8 innings, and in Game 1 of the Korean Series against Doosan in 2021, he became the winning pitcher with 7 hits, 8 strikeouts, and 1 run over 7⅔ innings.
This year’s two best foreign pitchers meet for the first time in the most important game. In the single-season playoffs since 1989, the probability of the team winning the first game advancing to the Korean Series is 78.1% (25 out of 32).
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