KT Wiz manager Lee Kang-cheol applauded starting pitcher William Cuevas for his performance in Game 4 of the Korean Baseball Playoffs (PO).
“Cuevas pitched like an ace as I thought he would and we were able to win,” Lee said after the team won the fourth game of the PO 11-2 at Changwon NC Park in Gyeongnam Province on Wednesday, adding, “The bats exploded from the first inning and we played comfortably for the playoffs.”
Cuevas, who lost Game 1 of the playoffs, credited his ‘slider’ pitch with helping him bounce back with six innings of one-hit ball four days later.
He said, “The angle of the slider increased, and it drew out the hitters’ swings. In Game 1, it was hard, but today I threw (the slider) around 130 kilometers per hour.”
Cuevas, who threw 73 pitches, mixed in a cut fastball (23), four-seam fastball (19), two-seam fastball (12), changeup (10) and slider (9).
Asked if he thought about leaving Cuevas in the game in the seventh inning, Lee said, “I ended up with the right (pitch) count because I had to think about it one more time. He said he was going to throw more, but I stopped him.”
The comments were likely made with Game 1 of the Korean Series on July 7 against the LG Twins in mind.
Lee strategically did not reveal the starting pitcher for Game 5 of the PO on Friday.
“I don’t have to tell you,” Lee said, adding, “We’ll see how they’re feeling.”
He did praise Anthony Alford and Byung-ho Park for their improved hitting, and Hwang Jae-gyun for capitalizing on a fielding error with a home run.
Alford, who went 0-for-3 in Games 1-3 of the playoffs, went 2-for-4, while Park, who was 2-for-12, went 2-for-5.
“I kept him (in the lineup) so he could get a feel for it,” Lee said, adding, “Byung-ho also got a hit in the first inning, so I think both of them are getting better.”
As for Hwang Jae-gyun, he said, “His mood kept dropping due to mistakes, but he did well in the offense and brightened up (again).” 토토사이트