Ryu Hyun-Jin posted

[CPT]

Not sure if it's been discussed at all, but Korean pitcher Ryu Hyun-Jin has been posted by his KBO team the Hanhwa Eagles. He's been pretty vocal about wanting to come to play in the majors, and his team reluctantly posted him last week.

He's no Darvish level talent, but he's a 25 year old big bodied lefty with some tricky stuff. Not really a power arm, but pretty good control. Upside is probably a #3 starter, and most likely ends up as just a solid back end rotation guy or in the bullpen. Keith Law has him at 37 in this year's free agent class, though he seems to have some bad info and/or outdated stats. Contrary to Law's claim that he has durability issues, he's been pretty durable for his career (avg 181 IP in a 130ish game season), though that durability has resulted in a lot of mileage on his arm for his age.

Piles up strikeouts here in Korea (210K to 46BB in 182IP this past season), though the quality of the KBO is pretty questionable. His traditional stats (W/L and ERA) are pretty underwhelming, as his team is the worst in the league.

There were reports of MLB scouts at most of his games, though I never heard of the Jays mentioned specifically. Heard about Baltimore, Detroit, and Oakland IIRC.

I figured it would take about $5 mil to win the bidding, though local papers seem to think it will between $10 and $20 million (not sure he would be worth that, tbh).

Anyway, was wondering if anyone has been following him at all or if he's even on the radar. Would be cool to see him in a Jays uniform (especially since it would get Jays games on TV here in Korea). It's hard to get straight info about him from sources in Korea, since they tend to prop up their own.

Here's his wiki page and a highlight vid (excuse the music).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryu_Hyun-Jin

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IPafjvkul7s[/youtube]

[torontoaces04]

There is always room for a Lefty who can throw strikes. Might as well put in an offer, it's only money.

[J.Kim]

I'm a fan... but that's because of what he's done so far in the KBO and WBC.

I'm not sure he'll translate over very well though.

He doesn't have overpowering stuff and relies more so on command/control with a pretty good change-up to get batters.

The giant concern for him, however, would be the fact that he's already pitched so many innings in his career. 1200+ plus all those Olympics/WBC/Asian Games and etc. plus his high school career (These top-end pitchers from Korea tend to have pitched a lot of innings in High School as well). There's also the fact that KBO is a notch below the NPB - I'd hazard a guess and say AA level/equivalent, though I've heard people range it from AAA to A+, in terms of level of skill.

I'd be shocked if the winning bid is more than a couple million - in which case there is probably a legitimate (though low chance) case of Hanhwa Eagles rejecting the bid.

He's worth a low bid but don't exactly expect the world out of him.

[CPT]

^ J. Kim, do you follow the KBO at all?

If so, who is your team?

I've been a casual fan my whole time in Korea, but this past season I really threw myself into it, and it was a lot of fun. The quality of play is not great, but it's decent, and the overall product is fantastic, IMO. Tons of fun to go to a game.

[number15]

whos that catcher he's throwing to.... the guy is tower, especially for a catcher

anway, i see no reason why Jays arent atleast making a bid.... there arent too many upper quality guys on FA market, plus AA has money to burn

im guessing he goies for 5-6 million bid

[CPT]

Should have mentioned somewhere that he's represented by Scott Boras.

[flatjacket1]

Should have mentioned somewhere that he's represented by Scott Boras.

Well that was fun while it lasted. No point going near a Boras client. He's likely going to demand 15M/year for 6+.

[SCF99]

why appoligize for the music........never go wrong with a little priest............lol at the cute little eagle hats in the first frame.......dont see a problem with putting in a bid to try and get a possible lefty talent. He might have a high number of innings pitched for being young but that almost seems like what some of todays young american pitchers are missing is to be able to get out and give a team alot of innings before there limit innings are hit and it doesnt seem like they fare any better on the injury department because of it.

[CPT]

Cubs made a bid, not sure who else.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/ba ... 4990.story

According to scouts, Ryu throws in the low-90s and has a plus changeup, a skill set that compares favorably to 27-year-old Wei-Yin Chen, the Taiwanese left-hander who went 12-11 for Baltimore last season. He has averaged 181 innings a season in the KBO, leading the league in strikeouts five times. He was a major contributor to the Korean team that won a gold medal in the 2008 Olympics and finished second in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

It is not known how many other teams bid for Ryu.

Texas in the running too.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/texas- ... un-jin.ece

Having already made a huge footprint in Japan, it appears the Rangers have their eyes set on expanding their international player-procurement empire to Korea. It could happen as soon as Thursday, the day bids are due for Korean left-hander Ryu Hyun-Jin, a 25-year-old going through the same posting process that netted the Rangers Yu Darvish a year ago.

The Rangers, along with Cleveland, Philadelphia, the Los Angeles Angels and Chicago Cubs, have all reportedly inquired about Jin. Clubs must have their bids in to MLB by 4 p.m. Thursday. The largest bid will be forwarded to Jin’s club, the Hanwha Eagles, who will have four business days to decide whether to accept the bid and sell Jin’s rights to a U.S. club or decline the bid.

Jin isn’t considered a top-of-the-rotation pitcher like Darvish was and certainly wouldn’t command the same kind of posting fee ($51.7 million). But he is young, stout and left-handed. He averaged 62/3 innings per start and compiled a 2.66 ERA for the last-place Eagles in 2012. He’s averaged 3.63 strikeouts per walk over the last three years. The scouting report: He won’t overpower many hitters, but will command his excellent changeup and can hit the low 90s with his fastball.

In recent years, MLB has sought to curtail wild spending on teenage prospects in Latin America by installing pre-set spending limits. The club has a total of $2.9 million to spend on international teenage free agents.

Jin doesn’t fall into that category. His signing wouldn’t count against anything but the Rangers’ budget. It is essentially a loophole, a weakness in the policy.

No mention of the Jays anywhere (a google search of "Ryu Hyun Jin Toronto" yields an MLB profile, his wiki page, and this thread), but after last year's Yu Darvish fiasco, I'll take any news about posted players, good or bad, with a grain of salt until official word comes from the parties involved.

[Crazy-Canuck]

He is quite good, i thought he should have made the jump after the wbc.

He's got that Sid Fernandez feel to him (maybe its just the weight) whenever Ive seen him pitch.

[mikero]

I guess some team must really like him:

@JonHeyman: Winning bid on lhp hyun-jin ryu of $25,737,737 accepted by hanwha eagles.

[MGD24]

I guess some team must really like him:

@JonHeyman: Winning bid on lhp hyun-jin ryu of $25,737,737 accepted by hanwha eagles.

It's been noted that 737 is an area code in Texas.
So quite possible that the Rangers got him

[Ado05]

Im thinking the Astro's did it.

[Kaizen]

That is crazy money. I had never even heard of him before this thread and now is he getting half of what Darvish got?

[Ado05]

Changed my mind. Going with the Cubs. Either them or the Red Sox, Dodgers, or Rangers.

[Crazy-Canuck]

He's one of the best pitchers in Asia fir the past few years. I think he's rejected Japanese offer before.

[number15]

The bidding is over. The Korean club accepted a bid of 26 million dollars. Its not clear who won the rights though.

Jays don't seem involved. I'd be shockef

[evilRyu]

Considering it was reported the Jays bid for Darvish was around the $30 million mark (IIRC), then I don't see how they'd now justify spending $26 for Ryu.

[flatjacket1]

Considering it was reported the Jays bid for Darvish was around the $30 million mark (IIRC), then I don't see how they'd now justify spending $26 for Ryu.

I don't see the point is spending 26M on him either.

[DonYon]

oh cmon now it shouldn't have been even half that, and I'm speaking with a total national bias

I'm gonna guess that the dodgers are banking on the huge korean community in LA