Ko Young-pyo allows 9 hits but pitches KT Wiz to 3rd straight win

By Yoo Jee-ho

SEOUL, June 16 (Yonhap) -- In many ways, this was a prototypical start for KT Wiz sidearmer Ko Young-pyo.

He allowed nine hits over six innings against the Doosan Bears but still held them to just two runs, as the Wiz prevailed 6-2 for their third straight win in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) on Tuesday.

Without overpowering stuff to dominate hitters, Ko likes to pitch to contact. In eight of his nine previous seasons, Ko allowed well over a hit per inning. So far this year, he has served up 83 hits in 74 innings.

He gave up hits to the first two batters he faced Tuesday at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in Seoul but limited the damage to a run in the first inning. The Bears had a man in scoring position in each of Ko's six innings but only managed one more run against him in the sixth inning.

"I supposed I had a pretty decent game if you just look at the result, but where the process is concerned, I was very shaky," Ko said afterward. "Obviously, getting the result is important. But I gave up too many hits for comfort, and I have to address that going forward. I tend to give up a lot of hits anyway, but I was not happy with the way those hits came."

Specifically, Ko said he felt behind in the count too often.

"If I am pitching aggressively but still giving up hits, then I'd tip my cap to the hitters," Ko said. "But today, I dug myself into holes and it drove up the pitch count. It allowed hitters to figure out which of my pitches wasn't working."

Ko said he was satisfied with the way he kept escaping jams.

"My changeup worked really well with runners aboard, and they helped me induce some groundouts," Ko said. "After I gave up a couple of hits at the start, I tried to really bear down and rely on my curveballs to get some soft contact."

The victory was the Wiz's third in a row, as they stayed in second place at 39-25-1 (wins-losses-ties). The LG Twins are leading them by two games after also winning their third straight game Tuesday night.

"I think we've always done a great job staying within ourselves over a long haul," Ko said. "It's still too early in the season to tell how things are going to go, but I don't think we will have wild swings one way or the other."