2012-11-11 16:52
Eagles' hurler eyes big deal
By Kang Seung-woo Hanwha Eagles left-hander Ryu Hyun-jin has the chance to join the Los Angeles Dodgers on a big contract. “It’s a dream come true,” Ryu said after the deal was reported Saturday. The Dodgers made the winning bid of $25.7 million (27.9 billion won) to negotiate a contract over a 30-day period with the 25-year-old pitcher, it was confirmed Sunday. The offer is the fourth highest for an Asian player behind three Japanese pitchers ― $51.7 million for Yu Darvish, $51.1 million for Daisuke Matsuzaka and $26 million for Kei Igawa. “We are thrilled to have this exciting opportunity,” said Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti. “We are looking to improve our team in 2013 and beyond. We’d like to thank the Hanwha Eagles.” Estimates vary about the pay package Ryu may be offered. Matsuzaka landed a six-year, $52 million contract with the Boston Red Sox in 2006, while Darvish signed a six-year, $60 million contract with the Texas Rangers last year. The pitcher’s agent is Scott Boras, who represents many top-dollar players in Major League Baseball (MLB). Boras has reportedly said that Ryu could wait and earn free-agent status by playing two more years for Hanwha if the deal offered is considered too low as that would raise his value significantly. “He’s ready to pitch in the big leagues right now,” Scott Boras told the Los Angeles Times. “He’s not a developmental project.” Boras said Ryu, who stands 1.87 meters tall and weighs 98 kilograms, draws comparisons to the likes of Jon Lester of the Boston Red Sox and Mark Buerhle of the Miami Marlins, who have recorded 85 and 174 wins, respectively. “He has excellent fastball command and a quality changeup,” he said. It is said the Dodgers competed with the Rangers and Chicago Cubs for the right to speak to the Korean hurler. The Dodgers want Ryu to boost a rotation that includes former Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw and former World Series MVP Josh Beckett as well as Chad Billingsley, Aaron Harang, Chris Capuano and Ted Lilly. Four pitchers with Korean pro-league careers ― Lee Sang-hoon, Lim Chang-yong, Jin Phil-joong and Choi Hyang-nam ― have been posted for the Major League, but due to low bids, only Choi signed with the St. Louis Cardinals for $101 in 2009. Bids of $600,000 and $650,000 were made for Lee and Lim respectively in 1998 and 2002, while Jin, who found no suitor in February 2002, received an offer of $25,000 10 months later, but they all refused. Ryu joined the KBO with the Eagles in 2006 and made an immediate impact, becoming the first player to win both the MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in the same season. The pitcher, whose fastball is over 145 kilometers per hour, recorded double-digit victories in his first six seasons before settling for 9-9 this year with the league’s bottom club, but he led the league in strikeouts ― his career fifth title ― and finished fourth in ERAs with a 2.66. He is 98-52 with a 2.80 ERA and 1,238 strikeouts to 383 walks in seven KBO seasons. If Ryu and the Dodgers fail to agree a deal, he will remain with the Korean club and cannot participate in another posting process until next year. The Dodgers, a six-time World Series champion, are better known as the club for which Park Chan-ho, Korea’s first export to MLB and Ryu’s teammate at the Eagles this past season, pitched for between 1994 and 2001 and again in 2008. In addition, right-hander Seo Jae-weong and slugging infielder Choi Hee-seop also played for the club. The Dodgers, headed by manager Don Mattingly, finished second in the National League West division at 86-76, eight games behind the San Francisco Giants, the eventual World Series champions. |
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