The War of the Chuns is officially underway.
The KBO announced on Friday the names of 20 free agent-approved players out of the 30 players who are eligible for free agency in 2025.
The 20 players are Kia Lim Ki-young, Jang Hyun-sik, Seo Gun-chang, Samsung Ryu Ji-hyuk, Kim Heon-gon, LG Choi Won-tae, Doosan Kim Kang-ryul, Heo Kyung-min, KT Uhm Sang-baek, Woo Kyu-min, Shim Woo-joon, SSG Noh Kyung-eun, Choi Jung, Lotte Koo Seung-min, Kim Won-joong, Hanwha Ha Joo-seok, NC Lee Yong-chan, Lim Jeong-ho, Kim Sung-wook, and Kiwoom Moon Sung-hyun.
By grade, there are three A-grade players (Choi Won-tae Kim Won-jung Koo Seung-min), nine B-grade players (Lim Ki-young Jang Hyun-shik Ryu Ji-hyuk Heo Kyung-min Eom Sang-baek Shim Woo-joon Shim Woo-joon Noh Kyung-eun Ha Joo-suk Lee Yong-chan), and eight C-grade players (Seo Gun-chang Kim Heon-gon Kim Kang-ryul Woo Kyu-min Choi Jung Lim Jeong-ho Kim Sung-wook Kim Seong-wook Moon Sung-hyun).
The 2025 free agent class, which was announced on Nov. 5, will be eligible to sign contracts with any club, including overseas clubs, starting Nov. 6.
In addition, as a total of 20 players have been declared as free agents, up to two of the free agents from other clubs can sign contracts in accordance with Article 173 [Restrictions on Free Agent Acquisition] of the KBO Rules.
The free agency market opens, but the first contract is reserved. On the afternoon of the 4th, SSG said, “We met with Choi Jung’s side and spoke positively. 파워볼사이트 The player’s side wants to proceed with the free agent contract method, so we will announce it after the contract on the 6th, when the free agent market opens.
Choi, the franchise star of the Incheon Baseball Organization’s history with SK-SSG, will be eligible for free agency for the third time this year, having signed a four-year, 8.6 billion won contract in November 2014 and a six-year, up to 10.6 billion won contract in 2018. He will enter the free agency market when his six-year contract ends in 2018. As the third free agent, he is classified as a Class C free agent with no compensatory player restrictions.
However,
SSG has entered negotiations with Choi and seems to have agreed to a contract without any objections. Considering the availability of free agent signing bonuses and the issue of protected players when signing outside free agents, SSG chose the unusual ‘reservation contract’ method of signing a free agent after filing for free agency rather than a non-free agent multi-year contract. Choi, who currently has accumulated 19.2 billion won in free agency, is expected to reach a cumulative total of 30 billion won with this contract.
In addition, infielder Heo Kyung-min, who signed a 4+3-year contract totaling 8.5 billion won with the Doosan Bears after the 2020 season, also opted out and entered the market. He will receive a total of 6.5 billion won (2.5 billion won in signing bonus and 4 billion won in salary) for the first four years. After the four-year contract, there is a three-year, 2 billion won player option clause. If a player doesn’t take up the 3-year, 2 billion won option, he can opt out and go to the market, but Heo chose not to take up the player option and went to the market.
Park Kyung-soo and Kim Kang-min, who announced their retirement from active duty, did not apply for free agency, and veteran players such as Oh Jae-il, Jin Hae-soo, Lee Yong-kyu, Kim Jae-ho, Lee Jae-won, Choi Joo-hwan, and others also did not apply for free agency. Seo Jin-yong, who was initially considered a semi-regular pitching resource in the free agency market, also chose not to file for free agency. The total number of players who did not file for free agency is 10.