Since February, 10 clubs have left for the spring camp to prepare for the next season, and some players are still unable to find their team. Pitchers Jeong Chan-heon and Kang Ri-ho (previously renamed Kang Yoon-gu), who declared their qualifications as free agents (FA) after last season, and outfielders Kwon Hee-dong and Lee Myung-ki remain unsigned.
Obtaining FA qualification is an opportunity for players to evaluate their own value. However, they are dangerous enough to stand at the crossroads of active life and retirement.
Kiwoom recently officially announced its will to send Jung Chan-heon to another team through a sign-and-trade. On the 26th of last month, Kiwoom expressed its intention, but no team has yet come out that will take Jeong Chan-heon.
Jeong Chan-heon’s FA grade is B. In order to recruit a B-class player, the player’s previous team must pay 25 protected players and one person, 100% annual salary compensation, or 200% of the player’s annual salary in the previous year. Even if it was a team that needed a pitcher, it was too much of a burden for the recruiting side to bring it, risking the bleeding of releasing existing resources. For this reason, Kiwoom tried to find a destination for Jeong Chan-heon even after easing this burden, but it seems that it is not easy.
Left-handed pitcher Kang Li-ho also shared his feelings through his SNS broadcast on the 3rd. It is known that he signed a one-year contract with Lotte, the original team, and asked to release the hold after one year. Kang Ri-ho, who explained about this, said, “I talked with general manager Seong Min-gyu that he would quit if FA lost.” Kang Ri-ho seemed relatively more likely to transfer because he was a C-grade and didn’t need compensation, but no one was looking for him.
Kang Yoon-gu, who had been thinking about whether or not to continue his baseball life for the past three years, said, “It’s not retirement,” and said, “I need time to think.”
Kwon Hee-dong and Lee Myeong-gi’s free agency declarations were rather poisonous. After last season, NC announced that 7 players were eligible for free agency. The NC side prepared other alternatives in case they leave. They recruited outfielder Han Seok-hyun, who declared a Futures League free agent. Kim Seong-wook also returned after being discharged, and it became a situation where there was no need to sign two people. Even a club official said, “It’s a pity why I declared free agency.” 메이저사이트
In this Stove League, large contracts were poured out. Yang Eui-ji recorded the highest amount in this category by signing a total of 15.2 billion won for 4+2 years with her parent team Doosan. The amount came because there were many teams who wanted Yang Eui-ji and Doosan was desperate.
On the other hand, players who became lost FAs became ‘Nakdonggang duck eggs’ who were shunned by other teams as they could not remain in their original team. A case like Lee Yong-chan, who signed a contract with NC after the opening of 2021, may come out, but the possibility of that is still slim. While trying to evaluate his worth, he faced a major crisis in his baseball life.