Lee Jung-hoo (25) and Ko Woo-seok (25, LG Twins), two friends of the same age who became brothers-in-law and brother-in-law, will finally step forward in the Major League FA market.
The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced on the 5th that the Major League Secretariat has notified 30 clubs of posting about Lee Jung-hoo and Ko Woo-seok. Under the Korea-U.S. player contract agreement, Major League teams interested in recruiting the two players can start negotiations with Lee Jung-hoo and Ko Woo-seok from 8 a.m. on the 5th, and the contract deadline is 5 p.m. on January 3 next year (above the U.S. Eastern Time). It is until 7 a.m. on January 4, 2024, Korean time.
Ko Woo-suk’s posting notice was made unexpectedly quickly. The Major League Baseball secretariat requested KBO for an identification check on the 14th of last month, but unlike Lee Jung-hoo, who was previously discussed with the club, Ko Woo-seok needed time to think about himself and persuade the LG Twins club. For that reason, following Lee Jung-hoo’s posting request on the 24th of last month, Ko Woo-seok’s posting request was made on the 28th. Since both are not FA status, if they sign a contract, they must pay transfer fees under the Korea-U.S. player contract agreement to Kiwoom and LG clubs, respectively. If the contract is not reached by the expiration date of the negotiation, the posting will be terminated, and the two cannot be posted until November 1, 2024.
In order to advance to the big league together with brother-in-law and brother-in-law, which is unprecedented in the KBO league, it is up to what kind of performance Ko Woo-suk will show. The two have been friends since childhood, and became family when Ko Woo-suk married Lee Jung-hoo’s sister in January. Last month, the son of Ko Woo-suk was born, and Lee Jung-hoo became an uncle. This was covered with interest in the U.S. as well. Baseball America, a U.S. baseball media outlet, introduced seven former KBO and Japanese professional baseball (NPB) players who are challenging for the Major League, and reported that “He married star outfielder Lee Jung-hoo’s sister and decided to come to the Major League with his brother-in-law.”
From Ko’s debut to last year’s Save King, his injury and national team career, he was introduced in detail. He joined LG as the first player to post his name in 2017, and posted a total of 19 wins, 26 losses and six holds, 139 saves, an ERA of 3.18 and 401 strikeouts in 368 ⅓s in 354 games. Last year, Oh Seung-hwan became the youngest player to record 40 saves in a single season in the KBO league, advancing five days to 24 years, one month and 21 days.
The evaluation was the lowest among the seven players introduced together, including Yoshinobu Yamamoto (25, Orix Buffaloes), Lee Jung-hoo, Shota Imanaga (30, Yokohama BayStars), Yariel Rodriguez (26, Chunichi Dragons), Yuki Matsui (28, Rakuten Golden Eagles), and Naoyuki Usawa (29, Nippon-Ham Fighters).
Baseball America said, “Ko Woo-suk is a physically powerful right-hander with a powerful stuffing. His fastballs can reach speeds of 93 to 95 miles per hour and reach speeds of up to 98 miles per hour. He lacks reception and can flatten his fastballs from time to time, but he can still beat batters with just pure ball power.”
There were more areas that were considered disadvantages. Baseball America said, “Ko’s best second pitch is a curve ball formed at 79 to 83 mph. It is inconsistent, but it fluctuates in and out of the league’s average level. In addition, there is a cutter in the 90 mph zone, but when it enters the strike zone, it is considered below the league average due to strong hits. “Ko is an aggressive pitcher, but he tends to fly fastballs and generally has control that is slightly below average.”
For this reason, even in the 20/80 scale they introduced, he was a player with a high risk of 40 points in overall evaluation, with 55 points for fastballs, 45 points for curves, 40 points for cutters, and 45 points for control. In the 20/80 scale, which explains the players’ tools by dividing them from 20 to 80 based on the normal distribution, the Major League average is 50 points, and 60 points are plus grades, which means the All-Star level. 먹튀검증