In November last year, the LG Twins, which manager Yeom Kyung-yeop took over, asked KT Wiz for close cooperation. It was a request to release the holding rights of foreign player Mel Rojas Jr. held by KT.
LG struggled with a series of failed adaptations by foreign hitters in the 2021 and 2022 seasons. LG failed in the Japanese professional baseball league, but it could not be done unless KT released the suspension. LG asked KT, which did not comply with LG’s request. LG recruited another foreign hitter.
On the 7th, KT announced the contract with Rojas Jr. KT signed with Rojas Jr. for a total of $900,000. A former MVP, Rojas will return to the KBO League after four years.
Rojas Jr. played for KT between 2017 and 2020 and recorded a batting average of 321 with 132 homers and 409 RBIs in 511 games. He hit .300 for the fourth consecutive year and won the outfielder Golden Glove for the second consecutive year in the 2019-2020 season. In particular, he performed very well with a batting average of 349 with 47 homers, 135 RBIs, 116 runs scored, and a slugging percentage of .680. He won four awards for home runs, RBIs, runs scored, and slugging percentage, and even became the MVP of the regular season.
Rojas Jr., who showed off his best skills, moved to Japan with a two-year contract following a love call from the Hanshin Tigers of the Japanese professional baseball league. Although he was paid a large salary, his performance in Japan plummeted. 안전놀이터
In the first year of his debut in Japan, he was delayed due to the restriction of issuing a work visa due to COVID-19. He entered Japan in April and had a batting average of 217 with eight homers and 21 RBIs in 60 games due to lack of preparation for the season. However, he also finished the game below expectations in 2022 with a batting average of 224 with nine homers and 27 RBIs in 89 games.
Rojas Jr. is currently playing in the Dominican Winter League after this year’s Mexican League. As of Thursday, he played in 35 games and recorded a batting average of 274 with five homers, 14 RBIs and 20 runs scored by OPS.910.
KT’s general manager Na Do-hyun said, “I expected Rojas Jr., who will return to the KBO League after a four-year hiatus, to maintain similar skills as before. I kept an eye on Rojas even when he was playing in Japan. I played in the Minika Winter League in 2022, and he did well as the winning member. I also closely watched the Mexican League and the Dominican Winter League this year. I gathered local scouts’ evaluations, videos, and data, and had a meeting with manager Lee Kang-chul. Some say that Rojas still has good speed and movement with his bat,” Na said.
After signing the contract with KT, Rojas Jr. said, “I’m happy to wear KT’s uniform again. I had a lot of good memories while playing for KT, and I wanted to come back. I’m looking forward to meeting my teammates and fans again.”
KT, which lost to LG in the Korean Series, is expected to strengthen its lineup of foreign players next season. With Rojas returning, foreign pitchers will continue to be with Cuevas and Benjamin, who played well this year.
KT announced on Thursday that it renewed its contract with Cuevas for 1.5 million U.S. dollars with the announcement of the contract for Rojas Jr. He is also holding negotiations with Benjamin.
Cuevas went 45-23 with a 3.64 ERA in 100 appearances in five seasons after joining KT in 2019. Cuevas, who led KT to its first combined win in the 2021 season, left the team with an elbow injury after throwing just two games in the 2022 season. However, he returned as a substitute for Boschleser in the 2023 season and won the title of winning percentage with a 12 wins and an unbeaten 2.60 ERA in 18 games.
“Cuevas has already been proven, and since he has no physical condition, he has sought to renew his contract,” KT’s general manager Na Do-hyun said. “I hope he will play the role of ace in the next season as well.”
Benjamin joined as a substitute last year and successfully renewed his contract with five wins, four losses and an earned run average of 2.70 in 17 games. This year, he ranked second in most wins with 15 wins, six losses and an earned run average of 3.54 in 29 games. Notably, he garnered four wins and an unbeaten 0.84 ERA in five games against LG.
If it is a foreign lineup of three players, Rojas Jr., Cuevas and Benjamin, it will be the highest in the foreign power of 10 clubs.