Ko Woo-suk after the WBC game against the Dominican Republic on March 14. /Photo by Park Su-jin
Ko Woo-suk celebrates after pitching a scoreless eighth inning against Taiwan in the 2026 WBC Tokyo Pool on March 8. /Photo by Kang Young-jo
The decision to politely turn down a return offer from his former KBO club LG Twins and remain in the United States is proving to be the right move. Ko Woo-suk (28, Toledo Mud Hens) continues to dominate in Triple-A, putting himself in prime position for a Major League call-up.
The right-handed pitcher for the Detroit Tigers’ affiliate took the mound in the eighth inning against the Omaha Storm Chasers (Kansas City Royals affiliate) at Werner Park in Papillion, Nebraska on May 13 (KST). He delivered two scoreless innings, allowing only one hit while striking out three.
Entering as the team’s fourth pitcher, Ko struck out Cameron Misner on a foul tip, then fanned Drew Waters swinging before retiring Brett Squier on a groundout. He needed just 14 pitches to complete the inning.
In the ninth, he struck out Josh Rojas to lead off, gave up a single to Gavin Cross with two outs, but calmly got Kevin Newman to ground out to shortstop to end the game. This performance followed his three scoreless innings on May 9 against the Memphis Redbirds (St. Louis Cardinals affiliate), marking two straight scoreless outings since his Triple-A promotion.
Ko’s recent heroics carry added weight given his unwavering commitment to his MLB dream. LG general manager Cha Myung-seok recently visited the U.S. to check on Ko and discuss a potential return to South Korea, but Ko politely declined, choosing to continue his journey in the
