NC Dinos’ right-handed foreign pitcher Eric Peddy was a little shaken in his 7th start of the season, but he did not give in and stood firm on the mound, leading the team to victory.
Peddie started in an away game against KT Wiz in the 2023 Professional Baseball KBO League held at KT Wiz Park in Suwon on the 9th and blocked 6 innings with 3 runs.
Peddy,메이저놀이터 who joined NC ahead of this season, has become the team’s ace. Prior to this KT game, his performance was 4 wins and 1 loss with an average ERA of 0.47 in 6 games (38 innings), and in particular, the on-base percentage per inning (WHIP) was only 0.89. That usually means he doesn’t get a single runner on base per inning. Also, with zero home runs, he showed strength in suppressing long hits.
In response, NC coach In-kwon Kang, who met ahead of the Changwon LG Twins match on the 2nd (3-5 NC loss), said about Peddy, “Everything is good. He also gave a thumbs up, saying, “He has excellent abilities in all areas, including command and management against batters.”
Peddie, who led NC’s 4-1 victory with 7 innings, 1 hit, 3 walks, 11 strikeouts and no runs against the Daejeon Hanwha Eagles on the 30th of last month, took a rather long break due to a series of cancellations in the rain, then returned to the mound that day. He was somewhat shaken, probably because he hadn’t been on the mound for a long time, but he didn’t break down and did his job well.
He was perfect in the bottom of the first inning. He started the game pleasantly, creating a three-way inning by laying down Hong Hyun-bin (pitcher grounder), Jo Yong-ho (left fielder fly), and Anthony Alford (second baseman grounder) in turn.
His first run came in the bottom of the second inning. He threw a 137km changeup to lead hitter Kang Baek-ho, then allowed a solo arch over the middle fence. Pedy’s first home run in Korea. But he didn’t waver any longer. Park Kyung-soo was eliminated with a strikeout, and Kim Jun-tae handled it with a second baseman ground ball. He was hit by the follow-up hitter Moon Sang-cheol in the middle left, but Kang Min-seong struck out to end the inning.
The third inning wasn’t good either. Kim Sang-soo and Hong Hyun-bin struck out in a row, but after giving Cho Yong-ho a right-handed hit, Alford dedicated two runs over the right-middle fence. Fortunately, Kang Baek-ho, who had hit a home run in the previous at-bat, was tied up with a knockout and no additional runs were allowed.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Peddy found some stability. After leading Park Kyung-soo and Kim Jun-tae to left field fly and first baseman ground ball, respectively, Moon Sang-cheol struck out to complete the three-way inning.
At the end of the 5th inning, his crisis management ability stood out. After stopping Kang Min-seong with a strikeout, Kim Sang-soo got a right-handed hit. Siwon Lee then led the second baseman with a ground ball, but Cho Yong-ho (left-handed hit) and Alford (walk) both got on base and reached bases loaded with two outs. However, he did not concede by catching Kang Baek-ho with a second baseman ground ball.
In the bottom of the 6th inning, Peddy, who was on the mound, hit the shortstop ground ball against lead hitter Park Kyung-soo and got the first out count. Afterwards, he dedicated a right-handed hit to Kim Jun-tae, but finished his mission that day by treating Moon Sang-cheol and Son Min-seok with three strikeouts and second baseman ground balls, respectively.
His final performance was 6 innings, 7 hits, 2 home runs, 1 walk, 8 strikeouts and 3 runs, for a total of 91 pitches. His earned run average slightly rose from 0.47 to 1.02, but it didn’t matter to him sticking to the top spot in the division.
In addition, with the team leading 13-3, Peddy passed the ball to follow-up pitcher Ha Jun-young, and as NC eventually won 16-4, he won 5 wins (1 loss) of the season, LG Adam Plutko (5 wins, undefeated) I also enjoyed the joy of being tied for the lead with the most wins.
In particular, the reason why Peddy’s pitching this time shines even more is because he saved NC in crisis. NC was in a two-game losing streak, kneeling down on LG in a row in the home game on the 2nd and 3rd. Prior to the match against KT on this day, the season record was 14 wins and 14 losses.
However, even though Peddie was a little shaken in the beginning, he did not break down and endured until the 6th inning, giving NC a chance to win. In addition, the batting line exploded with 21 hits and 16 points, and NC was able to overcome the crisis of falling in the middle and lower ranks.
At the crossroads of a losing streak that could have been longer, NC provided an opportunity to bounce back with an ace’s counterattack. Attention is focusing on whether NC, which has changed the atmosphere, will be able to improve the rankings with good results in the remaining games this week.