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Battle of the heaters set for Tuesday with rare Ponce-Gamboa head-to-head

Published: 12 Aug. 2025, 15:05 Updated: 12 Aug. 2025, 18:00

Hanwha Eagles pitcher Cody Ponce pitches during a KBO game against the Doosan Bears at Jamsil Baseball Stadium in southern Seoul on April 9. [NEWS1]

The KBO’s two hardest-throwing foreign pitchers are set for a rare head-to-head clash. Hanwha Eagles ace Cody Ponce, 31, will face Lotte Giants left-hander Alec Gamboa, 28, on Tuesday at Hanwha Life Eagles Park.

The pair have led this year’s “velocity revolution” in the KBO, each reaching a top speed of 158 to 159 kilometers per hour (98.2 to 98.8 miles per hour) and averaging 153 kilometers per hour on their fastballs. A no-holds-barred “power versus power” duel awaits, with both hurlers intimidating batters with blistering, heavy heaters.

Ponce has been the league’s top pitcher this season, starting 22 games and recording 14 wins without a loss, a 1.69 ERA and 193 strikeouts.

He is the only pitcher with an ERA under 2.00 and leads second-place Drew Anderson of the SSG Landers, who has 182 strikeouts, by 11 strikeouts. He ranks first in all six KBO pitching categories except holds and saves. Ponce also tops the charts in walks plus hits divided by innings pitched (WHIP) of 0.87, batting average against of .188 and opponents’ on-base plus slugging (OPS) of .498, and ranks second in innings pitched with 138⅓ innings.

Hanwha Eagles pitcher Cody Ponce pitches during a KBO game against the Kiwoom Heroes at Gocheok Sky Dome in western Seoul on July 4. [NEWS1]

Ponce will have a chance to make history on Tuesday. His 14th win, earned against the KT Wiz in Daejeon on Aug. 6, tied the opening winning streak record of 14 straight wins set by Chung Min-tae in 2003 and Hector Noesi in 2017.

A 15th victory would set a new KBO record. If he also tallies seven strikeouts, he will become the fastest pitcher to reach 200 strikeouts in a season, doing so in just 23 games — breaking the record of 25 games set by Ariel Miranda in 2021. Ponce has averaged 8.8 strikeouts per start this year.

Gamboa, however, is no pushover. Signed in late May to replace Charlie Barnes, he joined the Giants after the team had already played 55 games. In just 11 starts, he has racked up seven wins with three losses, 75 strikeouts and a 2.14 ERA — better than current ERA runner-up James Naile of the Kia Tigers with 2.38, despite not yet meeting the innings minimum to qualify for the leaderboard.

Lotte Giants pitcher Alec Gamboa pitches during a KBO game against the Samsung Lions at Daegu Samsung Lions Park in Daegu on May 27. [YONHAP]

Notably, Gamboa is a left-hander yet has reached a top speed of 157.8 kilometers per hour. As of Monday, he was the only lefty in this season’s top 10 for fastest pitches, and his mark is the fastest ever recorded for a left-handed pitcher since the KBO began using official pitch-tracking technology in 2011.

The Giants had initially planned to start newly signed foreign pitcher Vince Velasquez on Monday, but manager Kim Tae-hyung postponed his debut to allow more time for rest and acclimatization, leading to the highly anticipated Ponce–Gamboa duel.

The Eagles, in second place, currently lead the third-place Giants by 4.5 games. Even a three-game sweep by the Giants would not be enough to flip the standings. Still, both clubs have strong incentives to sweep the series — the Eagles are chasing the league-leading LG Twins, two games ahead, while the Giants are eager to close the gap and set up a late-season surge.

Lotte Giants pitcher Alec Gamboa throws a bullpen session ahead of a KBO game against the Samsung Lions at Sajik Baseball Stadium in Busan on May 18. [YONHAP]

Both foreign aces will take the mound carrying the weight of both personal milestones and team ambitions.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom staff.
BY BAE YOUNG-EUN [[email protected]]