KBO Picks & Odds (September 24): Pay the Juice on Jokisch and Kiwoom

• Kiwoom’s Eric Jokisch has allowed one run or less in four of his past five starts
• Jokisch is 1-0 versus SK with a 1.29 ERA this season
• Find odds and best bets for the KBO’s five-game slate on September 24th in the article below

Just when you thought things couldn’t get worse for SK, they now have to face arguably the KBO’s best pitcher. The Wyverns, who’ve been outscored by 29 runs over the last week, will take on Eric Jokisch and Kiwoom at 5:30 am EST on Thursday, looking to avoid their seventh straight loss.

 KBO Odds: Thursday, September 24th

Odds as of Sept. 23rd at FanDuel.

To no one’s surprise, the Heroes opened up as big favorites. Kiwoom currently sits in second place, 2.5 games behind NC, and can ill afford to suffer losses to the bottom feeders of the league. As such, we’re going to lay -1.5 on the runline with the Heroes. The -176 odds aren’t very favorable, but let’s treat this like a high interest savings account. Our return won’t be as great as a big hit on the stock market, but we’ll still come out ahead.

Jokisch is Just Nasty

The main reason to be so optimistic about this game is the one-sided pitching matchup. Jokisch has been virtually unhittable lately, allowing no more than one earned run in four of his past five starts.

Impressive performance from Eric Jokisch today in the #KBO. Had 20 whiffs + 14 called strikes against Hanwha and the runs he allowed were more the result of defensive miscues than any hard contact #KBOLeague (changeup/changeup) pic.twitter.com/kq0stM1TXQ

— Ben Howell (he/him) (@benhowell71) September 18, 2020

Dating back to the beginning of the year, he’s surrendered more than two earned runs four times, and more than three earned runs just once. He leads the KBO in ERA and WHIP, and has a 22-3 strikeout-to-walk rate over his last four outings.

Jokisch’s Last Five Starts

SK meanwhile, is averaging just 3.9 runs over its past 10 contests, and a league worst 6.6 hits per game. They’ve scored just six times in their last four outings and are 3-8 versus Kiwoom this season.

The Wyverns will counter with Geon Wook Lee, who was rocked in his last start by NC, and fared poorly in his only outing this season versus the Heroes. He’s currently sporting a 5.20 ERA, and has recorded a quality start in just 26% of his outings.

Pick: Kiwoom Heroes -1.5 (-176)

An Under the Radar Gem

Doosan’s Won Joon Choi has been flyer under the radar all season, but he’s finally starting to get his due. The 25-year-old, who spent most of last year and the first part of 2020 working out of the bullpen, has blossomed as a starter over the last three months posting a 7-1 record.

Choi Won-joon, 🔥 follow-thru/k strut. pic.twitter.com/EjTm6t1pie

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 12, 2020

He’s beaten Thursday’s opponent Samsung twice already this season, and has allowed two runs or less in 9 of his 12 starts.

The Lions meanwhile, have been outscored by 18 runs over their last seven games, dropping six of those contests. They’ll counter with Ben Lively, who was shelled last time out versus KIA. The 28-year-old surrendered nine hits and five runs in just 4 innings, and has a middling track record against the Bears this season. He’s allowed six runs in 11 innings, walking nine batters and surrendering another nine hits along the way.

Pick: Doosan Bears -1.5 (+112)