The San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball are single-minded in their pursuit of Lee Jeong-hoo. Will this single-mindedness and sincerity show through in the contract amount?
Lee Jung-hoo’s quest for the major leagues has officially begun. The KBO announced on April 24 that it had requested the Major League Baseball office to post Lee to all 30 major league clubs at the request of Kiwoom. All 30 clubs will be able to negotiate with Lee from 8 a.m. ET on the day after the posting is made by the Major League Baseball office until 5 p.m. ET on the 30th day.
The clubs that sign him will have to pay Kiwoom a transfer fee based on the size of his contract, according to the Korea-U.S. Player Contract Agreement. The size of Lee’s contract is the transfer fee that Kiwoom will accept.
Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, J.D., Martinez, and Rhys Hoskins are among the hitters awaiting evaluation in this year’s Major League Baseball free agency market. Bellinger and Chapman are generally considered the “top two” in the market. Shohei Ohtani, a two-hitter, is considered another “newcomer” to the market.
After Bellinger and Chapman, this is the next name on the market. Considering his current value and potential, it is believed that a ‘jackpot’ is possible and can be achieved. The interest from clubs is real.
Led by “super-agent” Scott Boras, there has been a flurry of sales activity.
“Almost half the teams in the league have already contacted us about him,” Boras said at a general managers’ meeting earlier this month, adding, “He can play defense, he has power. There’s a premium in the middle infield.”
Boras, the agent, said that half of the 30 clubs, about 15, were interested in Lee, and New York Post reporter John Heyman, who is well versed in the transfer market, said that “about 20 clubs are considering signing Lee,” explaining the intense interest in Lee.
However, whether they are just dipping their toes in the water or are really serious about him is not known unless they are directly involved in the negotiations. However, there are around 20 teams that are said to be interested, but only one team has shown a united front in their pursuit of Lee. The San Francisco Giants.
San Francisco is looking to spend big this year. They’ve decided they need a superstar presence and are scrambling to add one.
They were in the market for Aaron Judge, 카지노사이트가이드 who won the “clean” home run title last year without using banned substances, but were rejected. They offered him a nine-year, $360 million contract, but he went back to his original team, the New York Yankees, who offered him a similar deal.
The Giants then offered shortstop Carlos Correa a massive 13-year, $350 million contract, which he agreed to, but did not pass the medical test.
A right ankle issue left San Francisco in limbo and the deal fell through.
San Francisco finished the year with a 79-83 record and a 4.08 winning percentage, good for fourth place in the National League West. The Giants have the power, but they don’t have the superstar presence to dominate opponents and attract fans. Teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres are always ready to spend money, while the Arizona Diamondbacks rebuilt and made it to the World Series this year. San Francisco has the “one shot” to turn things around.
Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Cody Bellinger are all top priorities for the Giants. ‘San Francisco needs to add a star bat, outfield defense, starting pitching and shortstop to build a team,’ The Athletic recently wrote in an article about the 15 teams in the National League, ‘The Giants have been chasing superstars for the past few years and failed. They had the highest bid for Aaron Judge until the Yankees offered the same amount. They made the highest offer for Carlos Correa before the medical team voided his contract,” he said, referring to last year’s history of failure.
“They will try again for Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. However, there is no guarantee that they will be able to sign either player, even if the competition is fierce and they offer the highest amount of money.
Although not mentioned further, Lee Jung-hoo is also on San Francisco’s list.
The Giants are looking at Lee as a way to bolster their defense in center field, as well as their Korean marketing power. Most importantly, the Giants are the only team to have Lee’s name on their list.
The Giants are serious about Lee. They’ve been watching him closely, and during this season, the team’s top brass traveled to Gocheok Dome to watch him play. And during Lee’s farewell game, Giants general manager Pete Putilla came to watch.
As NBC Sports Bay Area reported earlier this month, “Even if the Giants lose both Ohtani and Yamamoto, there are still plenty of ways the Giants can improve their roster. Bellinger, who was a target a year ago, is a good fit for San Francisco, which is looking for a center fielder for the second straight year.
They also mentioned Jung-Hoo Lee as the next best option in center field. ‘
This summer, top San Francisco officials traveled to South Korea to watch Lee. General manager Pete Putilla traveled back to Korea to watch Lee play his final game for the Kiwoom Heroes. The San Francisco front office spent months conducting a full investigation into Yamamoto and Lee.
It also said, “At the plate, Lee is considered the defensive center fielder who best fits San Francisco’s team philosophy. He has drawn 49 walks and struck out just 23 times this year. “He has the best hand-eye coordination of any KBO player I’ve ever seen,” said a longtime scout. He also reminded us that he was developed by Bob Melvin, who moved from San Diego to San Francisco, and said, “Melvin helped Kim become a big contributor in San Diego, and San Francisco sees a lot of similarities with him. Kim’s success over the past two seasons is one of the reasons why the Giants are considering him as a potential center fielder.
This evaluation of Lee should translate into a price tag.
For starters, Lee’s estimated price tag is the highest for a Korean player in the KBO. MLB Trader’s has him at $50 million over five years, The Athletic at $56 million over four years, ESPN at $63 million over five years, and CBS Sports at $90 million over 4+2 years. Most outlets claim to be able to get deals over $50 million and even closer to $100 million.
Of course, contract estimates don’t always translate into actual contracts. Kim Hae-sung’s total contract expectations were as high as $60 million. There’s a good chance that the actual contract will be a bit lower than expected. However, at this point, it’s safe to say that American interest has effectively booked the highest-priced contract for a Korean player in the KBO.
The highest guaranteed contract for a Korean player in the KBO is Ryu Hyun-jin, who signed a six-year, $36 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers in December 2012. Kim Ha-seong signed a 4+1 year, $39 million contract with San Diego on January 1, 2021. In terms of guaranteed money, it’s four years and $28 million. Kim has a higher contract total and average annual salary, and Ryu has a higher guaranteed total. In January 2015, Jung Ho Kang signed a 4+1 year, $16 million deal with Pittsburgh, and in December 2015, Byung Ho Park signed a 4+1 year, $18.5 million deal.
Will San Francisco’s single-mindedness and genuineness in pursuing Lee lead to the highest contract for a Korean player in the KBO?