For Koch, this was a welcome change from his first Triple-A incarnation last September. I knew the team we had last year. I know my guys are gonna get there. There was a time when Billy Koch didn't think that way. I tried to strike everybody out and throw as hard as I could.
Strikeouts are good, but outs are what counts.
In one game he was clocked at 102 miles per hour. It was enough to make a guy cocky. Koch, who had a reputation as a flake in college, thought 102 might be a good number for his first professional uniform. He has mellowed. He is learning to pitch.