Padres sign Woo-Suk Go to a two-year contract
SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Padres have signed right-handed reliever Woo-Suk Go (OOO-suck-go) to a two-year contract with a mutual option for 2026, President of Baseball Operations and General Manager A.J. Preller announced today.
In 44 relief appearances for the 2023 Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) Champion LG Twins last season, Go posted a career-best 12.1 strikeouts per 9.0 innings pitched with a 3.68 ERA (18 ER, 44.0 IP), 1.36 WHIP, two home runs allowed, 15 saves, and 59 strikeouts against 22 walks. The right-handed reliever held left-handed batters to a .179 opponent average, and righties hit .286 against him. Go logged the final out in Game 5 of the Korean Series opposite the KT Wiz, going 1-1 with a save in the KBO postseason. The 5-foot-11, 198-pound pitcher joined teammate Ha-Seong Kim on the 2023 World Baseball Classic roster for the South Korean team, but he did not make an appearance in the tournament.
In seven seasons in the KBO with the LG Twins (2017-23), Go owned a 19-26 record and 139 saves in 354 career appearances (all in relief) for a 3.18 ERA (130 ER, 368.1 IP), 401 strikeouts against 163 walks, and a 1.27 WHIP. The 25-year-old native of Incheon, South Korea, led the KBO in saves in 2022 (42) and his 139 total saves from 2019-23 led the league over that span. In his last three seasons since 2021, Go posted a 2.32 ERA (42 ER, 162.2 IP) with 207 strikeouts against 66 walks, and he finished in the Top 10 in the league in saves in each of the last five years (2019-23).