"We met with Kim Sun-bin's agent. We want to get him."
The Kia Tigers grabbed internal free agent Ko Jong-wook, 34, three days after the opening of the 2023-2024 free agency market. They signed the best pinch-hitter and contact hitter in the KBO for two years and up to 500 million won. Now, Kia's eyes turn to another internal free agent, Kim Sun-bin.
Kim will likely be a tougher sell than Ko Jong-wook. In 119 games this season, Kim is batting .320 with 48 RBI, 41 runs scored, a .739 OPS, and a .333 slugging percentage. He has a .303 career on-base percentage. In the last four years of his four-year, $40 million contract, he's hit over .300 every year but last year (.287).
Has the ability to hit pitches to both left and right. His average is inevitably high. His push to right is the best among right-handed hitters in Korea. He's not a home run hitter, but he's a decent second base producer. His range has decreased, but his defense hasn't dropped significantly from his prime.
KIA will have to start the process of finding a post-Sun-Bin slowly. However, they still need Kim. Partly because he has a solid career ahead of him, but also because they still don't have a second baseman like Kim. There is also a need to buy time for younger center fielders to develop, and as a captain, his leadership on and off the field has been outstanding.
KIA has met with Kim's agent. A free agent with this much weight can take time to negotiate and close the gap. "We want to get him, so we want to close the gap little by little. He is a franchise player and a one-club man," Shim said in a phone call on the 21st.
The team is also open to the possibility of signing Choi Hyung-woo, who is not a free agent but already has a three-year, 4.7 billion won free agent contract, to a non-free agent multi-year deal. However, he is not a free agent and is not a player who will leave KIA, so the organization's current priority is Kim Sun-bin. "Hyung-woo is not a free agent, so we have some time," said Shim Jae-hak. 호텔카지노
KIA doesn't seem to be in a position to be very aggressive in signing outside free agents like they were when they signed Na Sung-bum two years ago. This is because they don't have a lot of salary cap space, and in fact, Kim's departure will have a big impact on the 2024 season.
"If I'm here next year, I definitely want to go to the postseason," Kim said after the final game of the season, "and it's not up to me," he said of his free agent contract. The free agent market is a living thing, and there are many surprises.
In the past, keystone combo Ahn Chi-hong (33, Hanwha Eagles) signed a 4+2 year, 7.2 billion won free agent contract. Four years earlier, Ahn signed a 5.6 billion won contract with the Lotte Giants. He got older and signed a better contract. So what about Kim Sun-bin?