11:02PM: The KBO officially requested to Major League Baseball that Lee be posted (reporter Jiheon Pae had the news first, and thanks to MyKBO.net’s Dan Kurtz for the update). This doesn’t necessarily speed up the timeline reported by Yoo earlier tonight, as Yoo reiterated that “with the Thanksgiving holiday, the process likely won’t begin in earnest until early December.” Once Lee is posted, his window will only be 30 days, not 45. The change to a 45-day posting period was made last offseason for NPB players, though it appears as though players coming from the KBO League have just the original 30 days to find a contract.
9:42PM: The Kiwoom Heroes gave Jung Hoo Lee’s medical records to KBO League officials yesterday, Jeeho Yoo of Yonhap News reports (via X). Between the usual review protocols between both the KBO and then MLB officials, Yoo figures that Lee will be officially posted for Major League teams in early December, factoring in a bit of delay given the Thanksgiving holiday.
That will officially open the floodgates on what is expected to be a brisk market for Lee’s services, with the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reporting that 20 teams are interested in the outfielder. With this many teams potentially in the hunt, it certainly seems like Lee could match or exceed MLBTR’s projection of a five-year, $50MM contract, a prediction made due to both Lee’s impressive track record in South Korea and the fact that he is only 25 years old. The Giants, Yankees, and Padres are the teams who have been publicly linked to Lee’s market to date.
While Lee’s expected price tag will be much lower than that of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the two players share some market similarities due to their young age of 25. In theory, both have lots of prime years ahead and perhaps haven’t even reached their peak, whereas many players coming to the majors from Japan or South Korea are already in their late 20’s or into their 30’s by the time they’re posted, or by the time they amass enough service time for full free agency.
Because NPB is seen as a higher caliber of league than the KBO and because Yamamoto is seen as more of a true elite talent, his expected contract will naturally be higher than Lee’s, since some scouts aren’t entirely sold on how Lee’s bat will translate to much power against MLB pitching. Some comps have been made to Masataka Yoshida but with a higher defensive ceiling, even if Lee might not stick in center field. Lee’s platform year was also limited to 86 games due to season-ending ankle surgery, and while he should be healthy for Spring Training, he missed a critical chance to further showcase himself for any doubting evaluators.
In short, there’s plenty of room for variance on the kinds of offers that Lee might get, since there’s bound to be a wide range of opinions within a 20-team field. Some teams might drop out of the running simply because they’ve made other outfield acquisitions in the interim, maybe before Lee’s posting window even opens. Other teams who have a larger presence in international scouting will have more data on Lee, though that perhaps would work either for or against him depending on a club’s opinion.
As per the league posting rules, Lee will have 45 days to sign with a Major League team once his posting period opens. If he can’t land a contract within those 45 days, he’ll return to the Heroes for the 2024 KBO season and have to wait until next winter for another chance at coming to the big leagues. While it seems likely Lee will find an acceptable deal to come to North America, a return to South Korea can’t be entirely ruled out. There could be lingering concerns over his health or perhaps just how he’ll adjust to the majors, or Lee and his agents at the Boras Corporation might not be satisfied with the offers on the table.
The Heroes will receive a posting fee tied to Lee’s eventual contract, with the new MLB club paying this fee on top of what they give to Lee himself. The Heroes will get 20% of the first $25MM of a contract, 17.5% of the next $25MM, and 15% of anything beyond the $50MM threshold. At MLBTR’s projection of a $50MM deal, the Heroes would get a $9.375MM posting fee.
I would like him to be the starting CF for the Padres.
Given his injury, fans may be singing a different tune, more Tina Turner than Blackpink or BTS.
“We don’t need another Hero.”
Hoo Jung is he again?
Are you a 5th grader on your Thanksgiving break from school?
They should just say the usual suspects in international players. You know its only the large markets, who this is all tailored for. No need to name them.
Shogo Akiyama
One in about 99.
“ONLY the large markets”
Chapman?
Padres are a large market? You said they were a small market team.
San Fran or Yankees are the most likely teams for him. Somebody might actually sign with the Giants, kinda like Arson Judge did last season?- @gfan…
Lee makes sense for the Yankees. Small CF, he could stay in CF. Lefty on base type who can bat at the top of the order. That frees up LF for someone like Bellinger who could be a lefty power bat in that lineup and he could be CF if needed. Rizzo, Judge, Stanton and Torrez makes that a fearsome lineup again. Volpe can bat lower in the lineup and continue his development. Wells and Trevino can split time behind the plate. I would try and add Nolan Gorman for 3B and have DJ as super utility. That puts 5 lefty bats in the lineup. .
Ha ha. You go girl !
Bellinger seems like a better fit for the Yankees. Big name, big LHB, can stay in CF.
Shintaro Fujinami, Koji Uehara, Yoshihisa Hirano, Toru Murata, Nori Aoki, etc. And these are just Japanese players.
Is this clown still crying about it’s unfair players get to pick where they play?
I think he’s just pretty frustrated being a long-time Reds fans and the team unwilling to spend. We were in agreement that the Reds was pretty crappy in choosing not to give Joey Votto a proper sendoff even they though they knew months ahead that they decidedly weren’t going to pick up his ’24 option. I can’t think of any other team who’ll sit on their hands as a franchise icon possibly ends his career.
No small market team fans are just tired of large market team fans being so spoiled.
Only one all star appearance for all those small market additions. Small market teams get the leftovers.
If I were a good player in another country and wanted to see if I could make it in the majors, I would definitely look to go to a team that was really good. I wouldn’t want to be on a team that loses all the time. How fun would that be?
Unlike Papi, Pujols, etc., Votto is not retiring. And telling a player in advance that you are not picking up his option is kind of strange.
That gives him time to prepare, look for another team, decide to retire, whatever he might want to do. Like the Dodgers not hanging a QO on Kershaw, it’s a token of respect.
That isn’t as true about players from Korea. The league isn’t as talented as others which make other teams skeptical to pay huge money
Pirates signed a star out of Korea years back in Jung Ho Kang who didn’t cost that much.
Kang was 28 and his stats really don’t compare to Lee. Kim came over and set the table for more KBO players to come over here.
Astros??
This guy has Ted Williams #’s practically (minus a bit of slug). I want him. And so do Halos & Dodgers!
Giants want this guy ?
With his #’s I don’t see who WOULDN’T want this guy..
Assuming better pitching, better athletes, and better fielding his BA and OBP could take a little hit, but even so he’d still likely be a VERY solid CF option and a likely upgrade for several teams.
Above average offensive and defensive CF’ers don’t come on the market all that often, and if you can get one in his prime for 10-13 mil a year, I’d imagine most CF needy contenders would definitely be trying to go after him.
I hope soon that those Korean cheerleaders get posted to M.L.B games, but of course as weird as America has become probably not. Lee da Hye come on to Detroit, and spread some cheer here !
I had a Japanese friend ask me once why American baseball games were so quiet. Definitely a different crowd in Asia.
Every country outside of the US is loud and exciting. We need to adopt this energy.
Tickets and food are cheap in Korea. A beer at the park is the same price you pay at a convience store.
The stands are packed with working class people cutting loose. This is not the case in America.
Do you speak from personal experience, Ejemp2006?
Idk if he’ll hit that great but he’s great on defense and could easily steal 35-40 bases so a great 4th outfield option for any contending team.
I have never been to a game in Korea. In Japan the games were comparable in cost to a game in the US. We paid 15,000 yen for each of our tickets. About $100 US at the time.
The couple we were traveling with to Japan said they had went to an LG Twins (Seoul) game and paid 100,000 won for two field level tickets. Not sure what the exchange rate was when they went. Probably around $35-40 US.
I’ve lived in Seoul for 15 years and I’m a Dusan Bears fan. I can see a game, eat a meal at the stadium, drink three beverages and the whole thing comes out at about 45 bucks.
@Card AG Good call. Kang had a monster platform year, then came over and was a great pickup his first two seasons, his 28-29 seasons, 6.2 rWAR for around $6m. Think he got hurt, came back at 31, still in the U.S., and was replacement level. Still, his hitting carried pretty well, and defense always plays.
@Pad Fans Short of seats over the dugout, I’d much rather go to a small town A or A+ game than an MLB game: sit 40′ from home plate, no electronic signs or scoreboard worth noticing, hot dogs $2-3, tickets $6-8.
There was a report earlier that the Dodgers wanted him and he wanted to be a dodger. considering the most Korean American reside in the LA megalopolitan area it sure seems possible.
However, if your team throws truckload of money. who knows?
Aragon, I agree that money will change minds here but I’ve read (no idea if accurate) that Lee is a huge fan of HSK and is frequently seen wearing his jersey. Padres have definitely been heavily linked to him but the offer has to be comparable to the other teams for sure which we will soon find out.
Looking forward that the stove heating up.
All Padre fans… I’m a Tiger fan and hate to mention this but sometimes when your owner throws a bunch of money at players hoping to contend, and then he passes away… the people that inherit that money might not have the same desire to win. They may like money more than winning baseball games. Don’t be shocked if the Padres all of a sudden become penny pinchers.
Both before and after his death it has been reported by Preller and Seidler before he passed that he will ensure that the Padres are in a position to contend for many years to come.
I agree with the concept that you have shared but apparently, PS took matters into his own hands when he set up a trust likely (yet to be revealed) express provisions for spending / money set away for that purpose, to ensure others don’t circumvent his plan.
He left a wife and very young children as opposed to a bunch of adult children to take control.
This one may be a deviation from a general rule is all I’m saying – yet to be determined.
Peter Seidler wasn’t the sole owner. Ron Fowler’s still in the mix, and I think he still owns roughly half tthe team.
Ron Fowler sold his remaining shares in 2022.
sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/padres/story/2022-…
Peter Seidler was the majority owner with 54% of the shares in the partnership.
At the end of the day , he is pro athlete & he(+ his advisers) will pick the team that pays the most & (in his eyes) has the best chance of winning . The location, golf courses or scenery is way down the list . The only real potential game changer (& even then slight due to the season having few real breaks) is the flight time to Asia .
Today I am thankful that some still know where to use an apostrophe. Just not right now.
Seems like a possible under the radar primary left fielder for the Atlanta Braves. His power might be suspect but his bat to ball skills are pretty legit. Seitzer might can get 15 to 20 homers from him, but getting on base for the other guys would be the more important thing with Atlanta’s already stacked lineup.
Looks like Ichiro 2.0 to me!!!!!!
Think closer to 10-15 home runs, he’s more of a doubles hitter than anything. That being said, he is very good at making contact and has a good eye at the plate too. He might also pitch in 5-10 steals as well
@andrewf: oh yes, I fully would expect 10 to 15 homers from him now, but as he comes more into his prime power years, and works with Kevin Seitzer, I would not be shocked if it progresses to the 15 to 20 I mentioned before. (And he has hit 20+ once before in the KBO if I’m not mistaken).
Anyways, the biggest thing is he wouldn’t have to try to be a homerun hitter in Atlanta’s current lineup.
@southi After the last two postseasons and given their offer to Nola, I’m betting the Braves are saving up to get a guy they can count on as much as that’s possible in the postseason. They know what they need, and while a LFer would be nice, what they really need is a stud to take Game 2 or 3 of a postseason series.
Not going to disagree with you, in fact I was one of the few, if perhaps only person who posted in a thread a week or so ago, that I feel Atlanta is going to try to upgrade its pitching and obtain two starters. Now they may view Lopez as a starter, but I expect a higher tier starter signed.
But even with that said, I expect that at least $10 million a year would be the going rate for a decent starting outfielder, so I wouldn’t be surprised if Lee was signed by Atlanta.
Move Soto and add this guy, you give up offensive stats across the board but maybe this team could use a scrappy player…
Why not move Grisham and add this guy, then you’re basically getting someone who can hit better than .180, and keeping Soto’s offense……
Grisham will be moved but Soto brings back a better haul…
Welcome to SF Mr Lee! 🙂
Agnes !
I’m thinking there’s a big “proceed with caution” sign on hopes for Mr Lee. Would be good though. I’d enjoy a little international flavour in the Giants mix.
I’m really intrigued by this kid. Plays a fun game to watch.
He’s a Hoo
Did Horton hear him?
Dirty deeds…Jung Hoo Lee!
Wow, did you pull a hammy stretching for that one?
Unfortunately…yes! Hahaha
Since when do we use MM to mean million? Is it short for Millions of Money?
Roman Numerals… Bah… Why didn’t he put $XXVMM?
Roman money, maybe.
@JM88 Except… Adjacent Roman numerals don’t multiply, they add or subtract—meaning MM would be 2,000 in the way that XX is 20 or II is 2.
Let’s go Giants! Would be awesome to see him in the bay
Got to consider that KBO is similar to Double-A baseball so he might be putting up decent numbers but I don’t see it translating exactly to MLB.
There’s enough of a chance this guy might be a bust in MLB that teams should proceed with caution on the finances. He’s interesting, but there are red flags that suggest giving out a 5/50, as some have projected (4/56 at The Athletic) could end badly.
Can he hit velocity? The average fastball in the KBO is 89 mph. MLB it’s 93. In 2022, he only faced 109 pitches at 93+ for the entire season. MLB player sees that in a single week. How’d he do against that velocity? According to Fangraphs, .226/.273/.419, which is significantly worse than MLB hitters. His biggest red flag is his ground-rate, which is nearly 58%. Short of Ichiro, there are no recent impact MLB hitters with that rate. Over the last four years, only Raimel Tapia is at that level. Do you want your team to pay $50MM+ for Raimel Tapia?
Defensively, he’s viewed as good but not the best CFer in the KBO, and a number of scouts believe he might be stretched out there in MLB, perhaps better suited for the corner OF slots without the ideal arm strength for the corner OF. He has good foot speed but it hasn’t translated to high SB numbers
I’m not betting necessarily against Lee. His father was a legend and he seems driven and willing to learn. He expects to succeed. Just because he hasn’t faced consistent velocity doesn’t mean he won’t adapt. He does have exceptional bat-to-ball skills. I suspect he may require a year adjustment just as Kim did.
Question is, how much is the risk of the unknowns worth? $50MM plus seems like a lot based on his profile.
Quality info, Lord. Paragraph 2 is a cracker.
89 v 93. Yikes. That sounds significant.
Like you said, I would think he might have the same learning curve that Kim did. Take a year to learn to catchup to the 95+ gas he would be seeing consistently in the majors while providing plus defense in CF.
@LordD99 Those are all reasonable caveats, but they all have to come true for the deal to be sub-optimal, and if even one element isn’t accurate you’re in decent shape. Even if he’s just an average fielding CFer whose line isn’t much better than his line against the kind of fastball he rarely sees in Korea, .226/.273/.419, that’s 2 WAR in a weak decade for the position. And that’s assuming at 25 he doesn’t improve over the life of the deal.
One thing to note about groundball rates in the KBO through sports info solutions is that they tend to be heavily inflated (at least 15% or more like with Chris Flexen for example)
I thought the angels might be a fit, but could easily see yankees, SF or SD too.
Feel like he’s gonna be the ‘consolation prize’ for the Yankees or Giants depending who misses out on Bellinger
@Gmen777 Yes, in an off-year for FA position players, he’ll find a good home with a contender.