Though they sit just one game away from elimination in their series against the LG Twins, the KT Wiz still have an ace up their sleeve. William Cuevas has been one of the most accomplished postseason pitchers in KBO history, and he will look to grow his legend in a game four start against the Twins.
After coming over from the Red Sox organization in 2018, Cuevas got his first taste of the KBO postseason during the 2020 season. With his Wiz facing elimination and trailing two games to none, the right-hander delivered an absolute masterpiece, allowing just one run in eight dominant innings in a 5-2, season-saving win. The Wiz would go on to lose the series the next day, but Cuevas’ performance set the stage for an unforgettable outing the very next year.
The 2021 KT Wiz finished the regular season with a league-leading 76 wins, thanks in large part to the performance of Cuevas. He went 9-5 with a 4.12 ERA, striking out 137 batters in 131 innings. Those numbers earned him the game one start in the Korean Baseball Series, and he delivered, striking out eight batters and allowing just one run over 7.1 innings in a 4-2 victory over the Doosan Bears. For his efforts, Cuevas was named MVP of the game, and the Wiz would go on to win the series.
After pitching in the Mexican League in 2022, Cuevas returned to the Wiz in 2023 and helped lead them back to the postseason as the second seed. After a rocky start against the NC Dinos in the second-round opener, he bounced back in Game Four with six shutout innings to help the Wiz erase a 2-0 series deficit and advance to their second straight Korean Series. Cuevas would turn in another strong outing in Game Two (six innings pitched, two runs), but his bullpen would blow the lead and go on to lose the series in five games to the LG Twins.
Cuevas had another solid regular season in 2024, but his Wiz took a step back, needing to win a tiebreaker against the SSG Landers just to get in the postseason. The odds were stacked against KT in the wild-card round series against the Doosan Bears, as no five-seed had ever won two straight road games against the four-seed. The Wiz would become the first-seed, thanks largely to Cuevas, the winning pitcher in Game One with six innings of shutout baseball.
The victory would set up a Korean Series rematch against the Twins, who bounced back from a Game One loss to claim decisive wins in the next two contests. Though their backs are against the wall, the Wiz can feel confident knowing they have a pitcher with as much big-game experience as anyone in the KBO. The first pitch from Jasmil Baseball Stadium will be Wednesday at 5:30 a.m. EST.
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WBN KBO: https://worldbaseball.com/league/south-korea/
Photo Credit: William Cuevas of KT Wiz pitches in the first inning during the first baseball game of the Korean Series between Doosan Bears and KT Wiz at Gocheok Skydome in Seoul on November 14, 2021. (Photo by Jung Yeon-je / AFP) (Photo by JUNG YEON-JE/AFP via Getty Images)
