KIA Tigers lefty Yang to be posted

KIA Tigers pitcher Yang Hyeon-jong throws a pitch during a Korea Baseball Organization game against the NC Dinos in this file photo. / Yonhap

By Nam Hyun-woo

Talented Korean pitchers are trying to move into the big leagues this winter.

With Kim Kwang-hyun in the final stages of an ambitious move to Major League Baseball (MLB), his compatriot Yang Hyeon-jong is about to follow him.

Yang, a left-hander who pitches for the KIA Tigers in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) League, is expected to be posted by the Tigers on Nov. 17.

A number of U.S. media outlets reported that big-name clubs including the New York Yankees, the Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox and the San Francisco Giants could make a bid for the 26-year-old.

SPORTS2i, a sports data provider in Korea, said Friday that a number of MBL clubs have purchased Yang's pitching data, which includes release points, the ball's rotation ratio per minute, its vertical and horizontal movement, initial velocity and some other details collected by its “Pitch Tracking System.”

“We cannot give you the names of clubs due to our contract, but a number of MLB clubs have purchased Yang's data,” said an official at the company which officially tracks speeds and trajectories of pitched baseballs in the KBO.

The company also said that some big-name clubs are included on the list, though the number of clubs is smaller than those who bought Los Angeles Dodgers starter Ryu Hyun-jin's data when he was posted by the Hanwha Eagles after the 2012 season.

Yang seems to be attracting big league clubs because he is a left-hander who can throw fastballs hovering around 150 kilometers per hour and is armed with three additional pitches _ a slider, change up and curve. Despite the fact he struggled with injuries during the 2012-2013 season, he successfully bounced back this year and earned 16 wins, second-best in the KBO and the most among Korean pitchers in the league.

The New York Daily News said that Yang is a possible No. 3 starter in the majors with No. 2 potential, and is expected to fetch a higher posting fee than Kim, who will be in $2 million talks with the San Diego Padres next month.

Should Yang receive a higher bid, it will be the first time that he has outshined same-aged left-hander Kim, who has often received a higher appraisal than Yang. While Kim claimed the KBO MVP title and Golden Glove award in 2008 and was wins leader two times during his eight years in the KBO, Yang has been far from the title, except for the newly founded Choi Dong-won Award, which local media describe as the “Korean version of the Cy Young,” earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Oh Seung-hwan, a Korean closer for the Hanshin Tigers of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball League, is also setting his sights on the MLB.

“Many Korean baseball players might dream of playing in the majors,” Oh said Thursday during a news conference in Seoul. “This is not the end of my challenge. I also dream of playing in the big league. I expect to bring good news to you after I show a good performance for the Tigers next year.”

The 32-year-old, who joined the Tigers earlier this year after dominating the KBO with the Samsung Lions, contributed to his team's advance to the Japan Series, leading the NPB Central League with 39 saves.