It was an expedient, not an offense. In a way, it could have been a clever choice to dig into the loopholes of the system. In any case, if the system continues, the loopholes should be refined. It is about the so-called “Oh Ji-hwan trick.”
The LG Twins won its first championship in 29 years, impressing many baseball fans. At the center of the drive was “captain” Oh Ji-hwan. He hit three critical home runs in the Korean Series, and became the MVP. Although he was given the opportunity to play shortstop for a popular team from an early age, he failed to display as good as expected and became controversial more often. However, he created the best twist with his mature performance and leadership.
However, something that slightly broke the impression occurred right after the end of the Korean Series. Oh Ji-hwan submitted his FA application out of the blue. Since he signed his first FA contract with LG four years ago, becoming a FA again was not a problem. However, Oh informed the world earlier this year that he signed a non-FA multi-year contract with LG. He agreed to a huge six-year contract worth 12.4 billion won and even took a commemorative photo with Kim In-seok.
Why did he apply for the FA all of a sudden? It was because of the second draft that suddenly revived. A list of 25 protected players had to be prepared, but those who qualified as the FA were automatically excluded. It was LG’s strategic choice to protect even one player more. In fact, LG announced the non-FA multi-year contract, but neither created nor submitted an actual contract to the KBO. The announcement served as a “show” to other teams that they were unaware of. LG locked up players early on before Oh’s ransom soared further.
There was no violation of the rules. However, it could have been mean to LG to other teams. Of course, I understand that LG wants to keep it because there are so many good players, but few people would take this as a positive view if they announce the contract with such confidence and suddenly reverse the situation by saying that the contents were not true in order to protect one protected player. 온라인경마
If a club had to catch a shortstop FA, Oh would have been a highly coveted player, but LG had to remove him from the recruitment list due to the announcement of a multi-year contract with non-FA. It takes tremendous preparations early on to bring in a player of such magnitude. We need to secure a budget. Especially with the introduction of the salary cap system, such preparation process has become more thorough. However, Oh didn’t write a contract all of a sudden, and in fact, what kind of team can suddenly jump into the recruitment battle if they find out that Oh can apply for FA.
In the end, LG signed a “real” FA contract with Oh Ji-hwan on Wednesday. As announced about a year ago, the deal was worth 12.4 billion won for six years. Oh took another photo with Kim. Oh was not a losing choice either. He became the FA twice. If he becomes the third FA, he is rated C without fail. If he becomes the FA after spending six years without doing it this time, he will get grade B. Although he has declared himself an eternal LG man, he is very sensitive to players whether he will get grade B or C in the next FA.
The problem is that other clubs’ complaints were clearly heard in the process. And KBO also hurt its pride. This is because the loopholes in the ambitious non-FA multi-year contract system were revealed. The issue was discussed at a recent meeting of heads of 10 teams. No one could oppose the call for supplementing the regulations. This is because it was not natural for anyone to see. Also, if we let it go, there would have been another case of similar abuse.
As a result of the report, KBO will also announce a supplementary measure to this issue soon. Details will be available at the time of the announcement, but the answer is obvious. A player who has signed a non-FA multi-year contract cannot become a FA within the contract period. Although he could have played FA for years, it is highly likely that his qualifications will be reserved. Non-FA multi-year contract players and clubs will now have to submit their contracts immediately.