I asked Lee Jong-yeol, the general manager
Samsung, which finished eighth in last year's final ranking, is striving to strengthen its capacity in the off-season. Samsung, which has the highest ERA in its bullpen among the 10 teams, has focused on strengthening its pitching lineup and recruited Kim Jae-yoon (a maximum of 5.8 billion won for four years) and Lim Chang-min (a total of 800 million won for two years).
Kim Jae-yoon, who played for KT until last year, is considered one of the best firefighters in the league, with 169 saves in his first-team career. Lim Chang-min played in 487 games in his first-team career, leaving 27 wins, 29 losses, 122 saves, 57 holds with an ERA of 3.73 and 26 saves (ERA 2.51) in 51 games last year.
Through the second draft, Choi Sung-hoon, Yang Hyun (pitchers above), and Jeon Byung-woo (infielders) were brought in, and Connor Seabold, Danny Reyes (pitchers above) and David McKinnon (infielders) were recruited to complete the formation of foreign players.
Samsung has renewed its contracts with Kim Dae-woo and Oh Seung-hwan, who are the targets of internal FA. It gave Kim a two-year contract of 400 million won (a down payment of 100 million won, an annual salary of 200 million won, an option of 100 million won), and concluded the contract with Oh on a total of 2.2 billion won (2.2 million dollars), including a two-year contract of 1 billion won (a total of 400 million won + 800 million won).
After completing the contract with Oh, Lee Jong-yeol said, "We decided to conclude the formation of the pitching staff for this season. It took some time during the negotiation process as we agonized over the best way for our team amid an atmosphere of understanding each other. I want to express my gratitude to Oh for understanding and following the team's moves to form the best team."
Oh Seung-hwan is expected to create a synergy effect that shows a strong bullpen this season along with players recruited through the offseason FA and the second draft.
What's left now is a renewal of his contract with Kang Han-ul.
Kang is classified as an FA C-rated player and can transfer to another club if he pays 250 million won (2,240 U.S. dollars) in compensation without giving up an FA compensation player. Another advantage is that he can play in all infield positions. However, other clubs have not shown much interest in Kang. He has also failed to narrow differences of opinion with his original team, Samsung.
An official from the club said, "There is a big difference in amount," and that he is having difficulty in negotiating with Kang Han-ul, while Kang's agent explained, "There is only option coordination left."
In recent years, negotiations have begun to take off. Rumors have it that Kang Han-ul, who is in an unfavorable situation, is in an atmosphere of accepting the team's proposal.
Lee Jong-yeol expressed strong confidence in Kang's renewal of his contract. Lee Jong-yeol, who contacted reporters on the afternoon of July 17, repeatedly said, "I will do it soon." "From our perspective, it is uncertain whether Lee Jae-hyun (who underwent surgery on his left shoulder) will join the opening game, and we need to motivate Kang as well," he said.