Heroes infielder Song Sung-mun to ask to be posted for MLB teams
Song Sung-mun of the Kiwoom Heroes watches his solo home run against the KT Wiz during the clubs' Korea Baseball Organization regular-season game at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, Friday. Courtesy of Kiwoom Heroes
Kiwoom Heroes infielder Song Sung-mun said Sunday he will ask his Korean club to post him for Major League Baseball (MLB) teams after the season, hoping for a chance to take his talent to the top league.
"I will ask to be posted after the season, and we'll see how things play out," Song told reporters before the Heroes hosted the KT Wiz at Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul.
Song will be eligible to be posted for any interested MLB team after completing his seventh full season in the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) in 2025.
Once Song is posted, MLB teams will have 30 days in which to negotiate a deal with the player. If Song lands a deal, the Heroes will receive a portion of that contract in compensation.
The 29-year-old made his KBO debut with the Heroes in 2015 but didn't become an everyday player until 2019, only to spend all of 2020 and the first part of 2021 fulfilling his military service duty.
Song had his breakout campaign last year, when he established career highs across the board with a .340/.409/.518 line, 19 home runs, 21 steals and 104 RBIs.
He overcame a slow start to this year and took a .303/.381/.509 line with 20 homers, 20 steals and 66 RBIs into Sunday's action. Song is the only player to join the 20-20 club so far this season.
Song started drawing attention from MLB scouts last summer, and the number of scouts attending Song's games has been growing this season.
Song initially said he didn't think he was good enough to play in MLB, and he would stay home. But then in June this year, Song changed his tone slightly and said he would consider a move to the majors if the right opportunity came along.
The Heroes inked him to a six-year extension worth 12 billion won ($8.6 million) on Aug. 4 before Song became a free agent. Although the deal appeared to rule out any chance of Song going to MLB, the Heroes said they would fully support his dream of playing in the big leagues if he wanted to be posted.
"The team has been really supportive," Song said. "They are aware of my plan (to ask to be posted)."
The Heroes have sent five players to MLB, including a trio of Song's recent teammates in Kim Ha-seong (Tampa Bay Rays), Lee Jung-hoo (San Francisco Giants) and Kim Hye-seong (Los Angeles Dodgers).
It was a conversation with Kim Ha-seong that helped change Song's mind about making a jump to MLB, with the veteran infielder telling the Heroes player that he would have nothing to lose.