Finally found the ace! All three Korean league appearances have been 'QS' feats; will he stay with us next year?

*This content was translated by AI.

Although the team suffered a heartbreaking loss, the starting performance by the foreign pitcher was dazzling. This is the story of Pedro Avila (29), SSG Landers' new foreign pitcher who joined in the second half of the season.

On the 28th, SSG lost 1-2 in an away game against Doosan Bears at Incheon SSG Landers Field during the 2026 Shinhan SOL KBO League regular season.

With this loss, SSG ended its winning streak at '4', finishing with 36 wins, 4 draws, and 57 losses. The team currently ranks 9th in the league standings.

Avila pitched 6 innings (99 pitches total), allowing 5 hits, issuing 4 walks, recording 4 strikeouts, and throwing a scoreless outing.

In the first inning, he gave up a walk to leadoff batter Park Chan-ho but induced a double play at second base with subsequent batter Severino. Follow-up batter Park Jun-soon was called out on strikes by the catcher, ending the inning. In the second inning, after one out, Avila issued consecutive walks to Kim Min-seok and Ahn Jae-seok but retired Kang Seung-ho and Jung Soobin on groundouts.

In the third inning, with two outs, he allowed a single to center field by Severino but struck out Park Jun-soon swinging. In the fourth inning, after two outs, he walked Ahn Jae-seok but got Kang Seung-ho to ground out at second base.

A crisis came in the fifth inning. Leadoff batter Jung Soobin hit a single to center field, and after one out, Park Chan-ho also hit a single to center field, putting runners on first and third. However, while striking out Severino swinging, the runner from first base, Park Chan-ho, was caught in a rundown while heading to second base and was called out, ending the inning without further damage.

Avila returned to the mound in the sixth inning. After two outs, he allowed consecutive hits to Kim Min-seok and Ahn Jae-seok but retired Kang Seung-ho with a swinging strikeout, completing his outing for the day.

In the top of the seventh inning, when SSG led 1-0, Avila left the mound immediately after which relief pitcher Noh Kyung-eun allowed an equalizing run. Avila narrowly missed securing the win. Still, his scoreless performance was encouraging.

Avila is the new foreign pitcher signed by SSG on the 8th. He agreed to a total contract value of $400,000 (base salary $380,000 plus a $20,000 option).

At the time of signing, SSG stated: "Avila, who stands at 180 cm and weighs 95 kg, possesses a solid physical build. He throws a powerful fastball averaging over 150 km/h, reaching up to 156 km/h. Utilizing various breaking balls such as cutter, changeup, curveball, and splitter, he is the type of pitcher who can strategically pressure opponents." They further explained: "Considering his extensive experience as a starter, ability to handle innings steadily, and recent track record of active game appearances, we determined him to be the optimal resource to strengthen our current starting rotation."

A native of Venezuela, Avila joined the Washington Nationals in 2014 and made his Major League debut with the San Diego Padres in 2019. Over 72 career MLB games, he pitched 146⅓ innings, recording 8 wins, 4 losses, 1 hold, 1 save, and a 3.51 ERA. In the minor leagues, he appeared in 189 games total, starting 145 of them and pitching 742⅔ innings. Last year, he played for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), appearing in 15 games over 82⅓ innings with a record of 7 wins and 8 losses and an ERA of 4.04. This season, he started 13 of 15 games for the Triple-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians, pitching 60 innings.

Avila made his KBO debut on the 16th against KIA Tigers, pitching 6 innings with 3 hits allowed, 8 strikeouts, and a scoreless outing to earn the win. On the 22nd against Lotte, he pitched 6 innings allowing 4 hits, striking out 6 batters while giving up 3 earned runs, securing his second win of the season. Including today's game, he has appeared in 3 games total with a record of 2 wins and no losses, an ERA of 1.50. Over 18 innings, he has allowed 12 hits, issued 7 walks, recorded 18 strikeouts, and given up 3 earned runs. His WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) stands at 1.06, and his batting average against is 0.190. He has achieved three consecutive quality starts (starting pitcher pitching 6 innings or more with 3 or fewer earned runs).

Before the start of this season, SSG faced difficulties when Kim Kwang-hyun underwent shoulder surgery due to injury. Compounded by poor performances from existing foreign pitchers, it was no exaggeration to say the team lacked an ace capable of carrying a game on his own. In this context, Avila's appearance, with his ability to lead a game, is truly welcome news for both SSG and its fans. What kind of performance will Avila deliver in his next outing? And can he maintain strong results to stay with SSG next year as well?

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*This content was translated by AI.