Leaving the Market for History, Qualifications and Prospects

KT is reportedly seeking a multi-year contract with Ko Young-pyo as a non-FA. Currently, the final stage of negotiations is over, and the deal is on the verge of being concluded. Ko Young-pyo will become an FA after the 2024 season normally ends. He was very interested in the market. He is a player who can guarantee double-digit wins. Even KT was an indispensable resource. If he went to the market, he could not guarantee his stay. As a result, KT has been working on the idea of Ko Young-pyo's multi-year contract since last year, and is on the verge of being concluded due to rapid progress in negotiations in recent years.

"We agreed on a five-year contract with Ko Young-pyo. However, we are still coordinating details including incentives, and a medical test remains to be conducted," a KT source told "Spotv News" on Sunday. "We plan to make an official announcement later on." The overall gist of the multi-year contract is that the five-year deal is known to be worth over 10 billion won (approx. As Ko is a healthy thrower, it is not easy to think that any problems will arise in the medical test. For this reason, if the detailed provisions are well-coordinated, another major contract will likely be completed soon.

KT has yet to sign a multi-year contract as a non-FA player in the club's history. The previous record set by an FA player was 8.8 billion won (6.37 million U.S. dollars) for four years, which was spent when Hwang was hired in 2018. Unless something unexpected happens, Ko Young-pyo is expected to surpass that and open an era of 10 billion won (approx. Considering his outstanding performances so far, critics say that he is fully qualified for that. KT has also laid the groundwork for discussing the long-term framework by holding the ace and clearly establishing the power pole.

◆ From the hope of the dark ages to the ace of kt, from the ace of kt to the top pitcher of the league

Ko Young-pyo, a graduate of Hwasun High School and Dongguk University, joined the KT in 2014 after being nominated in the second round (10th overall). At that time, he was selected as one of the best starting pitchers among college players. Although he did not pitch fast, he was well received that he was able to succeed as a starter in the first division due to his stable command, soaring ball power in front of batters, and solid ball control and decisive pitching. At that time, KT was just established and needed a starting pitcher to lead the future of the team, and Ko joined the team with evaluation that he could utilize it immediately.

However, it took some time for him to completely settle down as a starting pitcher. Ko started playing in the top-tier professional league in 2015 and calmly continued his career. In 2015, he played in 46 games and threw 57 innings. He had a rough debut season with three wins, four losses and an earned run average of 5.68. In 2016, he was also not allowed to start full-time. He only posted 2-4 losses and a 5.59 ERA in 53 games. However, as he began to settle down in the starting rotation in 2017, expectations for his nomination began to emerge.

Ko Young-pyo pitched 141 ⅔ in 25 games in 2017, recording 8 wins and 12 losses with a 5.08 ERA. Although his ERA was not good, he gained valuable experience by playing full-time as a starter. He started to be mentioned as one of the candidates for the 2018 Jakarta-Palembang Asian Games. However, he was not on board. Although he was mentioned as one of the most promising candidates, he failed to break the threshold and left the team for a while to serve in the military, while throwing 142 innings in 25 games in 2018.

Ko Young-pyo, who drew attention from his team through thorough training during his service, returned to his team's ace after his return with full support from current KT coach Lee Kang-chul. Lee, who was also a submarine pitcher representing the league when he was an active player, achieved great success by making sure that he clearly showed off his strengths. Ko Young-pyo also showed strength by displaying more mature performance in the game. He pitched a career-high 166 ⅔ innings in 26 games in 2021, and stood tall as one of the national starting pitchers representing the league with 11 wins, 6 losses and an earned run average of 2.92. Notably, he was utilized as an all-weather in the 2021 Korean Series, helping his team win the Korean Series.

Ko has continued his upward trajectory since then. He pitched 182 ⅓ in 28 games in 2022, recording 13 wins and eight losses with an ERA of 3.26. He reached career highs in innings, multiple wins and 156 strikeouts. In recognition of his contribution, he marked the Taegeuk mark at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, and showed off his competitive edge against Western hitters who are unfamiliar with the same style as him.

He was worried about the fact that he has played many innings over the past two years, and the aftermath of the WBC, but it was unfounded. Ko Young-pyo had his best year of 2023. He pitched 174 ⅔s in 28 games, and had his best season in ERA with 12 wins, 7 losses and 2.78 ERA. He was highly recognized for his stable operation of the game and his ability to play long innings, and he has grown into one of the leading innings players in the league, recording quality starts (more than six innings for starters and less than three earned runs) in as many as 21 of 28 games.

Ko Young-pyo left behind the title of the best pitcher in Korea in 2023. In the report on the contribution to victory over substitute players compiled by Statistics website Statistics, Ko ranked second overall among pitchers in the league with a 6.14 record. The only player ahead of Ko was Eric Peddy, who was the best pitcher in the league and the most powerful pitcher in the league last year. Peddy's WAR was 7.29, ahead of third-ranked Ariel Furado's 6.03. Ahn Woo-jin, who finished the season early due to an elbow injury, was ranked second in Korea, and Kwak Bin, who was ranked third in Korea, had a big gap with 4.18 in Korea. Although he is not a pitcher who thugs at batters with fastballs and is not that flashy in pitching style, a pitcher talks about his performance. His performance led to a five-year, big contract worth more than 10 billion won (approx.

What stands out about Ko Young-pyo is his quality start. Ko Young-pyo has been one of the most outstanding pitchers in the league in the past three years.

https://www.totositesafe.com/