The Pitcher Just Hits Home Runs Well [EN]: Chapter 85

85. Draft (1)

“Ahem… Director Jeon. Do we really need to go this far for one rookie?”

“Sir, he’s not just any rookie. He’s a talent unprecedented in Korean baseball history.”

“Come on, you said the same thing about Choi Min-hyuk when we gave him 1.05 billion won two years ago. You called him unprecedented, but what’s he doing now?”

Three years ago, the Marlins gave Choi Min-hyuk, the second overall pick, 1.05 billion won. Even then, there were many complaints about overpaying. Especially since Phoenix’s Seo Gyu-tak, the first overall pick, received 1 billion won, the same amount as the previous record. But considering the situation at the time, it couldn’t be helped. To keep a player who was being offered $2.5 million in signing bonus from the majors, they had to offer at least 1/3 of that amount.

Of course, now he had nothing to say even if he had ten mouths. [Meaning he deeply regrets his previous statement.]

“But he’s recovering well, they say. He should be able to return sometime in the second half of the year.”

“No, why is it taking him so long with that Tommy John surgery thing? Other teams have players returning in less than a year.”

“There’s some individual variation, and if he comes back that quickly, there’s a high chance he’ll break down again. We’re not planning to use Min-hyuk for just one or two years.”

“Anyway, spending over 1 billion won and having them do nothing but rehab is common, but 2 billion for a rookie? Considering our team’s performance these days, we should be grateful to the chairman for not cutting our salaries.”

“Sir, Choi Soo-won is the one Baek Ha-min hit home runs off of every day in high school. Plus, he’s almost as good as Baek Ha-min when used as a pitcher.”

“Almost as good as Baek Ha-min as a pitcher? I thought I read in the report I saw recently that he still needs some seasoning in the minor leagues as a pitcher?”

Damn it.

He didn’t even read the reports properly.

Last time, the president read a few books on sabermetrics [the empirical analysis of baseball] and tried to interfere with everything, which was difficult, but this time, President Park Chung-shik doesn’t show any interest in baseball at all, which is also frustrating. Still, he’s definitely a seasoned figure in management, so he’s achieving clear results in marketing and management, and his credibility with the higher-ups is quite high.

“He’s changed a lot since last winter. Here are his pitching stats from the New World Big Mart Cup to the first half King of Kings tournament.”

“Hmm… I don’t know much about baseball, but this seems as impressive as Baek Ha-min last year?”

“That’s right. High school baseball has a fluctuating talent pool, so we can’t compare last year and this year 1:1, but these are still great stats.”

“But even so, it’s Baek Ha-min-level pitching stats, and the hitter is… whoever. Anyway, even the highest contract amount for a hitter ever was 1.5 billion. 2 billion is too expensive…”

“Right now, there’s talk in the big leagues that all the international prospect money this year should be poured into Choi Soo-won alone.”

“How much is that?”

“The highest team is at $6.25 million. And even the lower teams are at least $5 million. Teams below that can’t even think about it.”

“No, even so, it’s common knowledge now that Korean players going through the KBO [Korean Baseball Organization] is a low-risk, high-return situation. Do we really need to give him that much of a premium? Frankly, even Choi Min-hyuk wouldn’t have received the same care from surgery to rehab if he had been in the US. Besides, it’s not just 2 billion. What’s with this condition? We’re investing 2 billion, but if we’re unlucky, we have to send him back to the US in three years. No, this condition… isn’t it a condition that can only be included if that issue is resolved? Are you saying we can release him if that’s not resolved?”

“That’s not it. According to current regulations, he can only advance unconditionally after 7 years, whether it’s a release or posting.”

“So you’re saying we have to suck up to the association for this one kid, and on top of that, give him an unprecedented amount of money?”

“That’s what it will take for him to stay in Korea. Frankly, we don’t know what will happen once we get into detailed negotiations. But if the condition is cleared, isn’t it worth investing 2 billion?”

President Park Chung-shik shook his head.

“Ugh… I don’t know. Anyway, the amount of money the parent company can spend on the team is limited, so if this happens, it will inevitably affect free agency and player salaries. Keep that in mind.”

“Haha, the team’s finances have been improving every day since you took office, sir. Once Min-hyuk comes back in the second half of the year and Soo-won joins next year, it will be amazing.”

“Tsk, easy to say. Anyway, I’ll talk to the parent group. So, Director Jeon, just keep the team performing well. I told you, I’m not asking for much. We can’t change decades of mediocrity in an instant, but we still need to be in the middle. It’s been seven years since we’ve been in the top five out of ten teams. Isn’t that too much?”

“This year will be different.”

“It had better be.”

***

Just three months.

The atmosphere of the baseball team changed dramatically. First of all, the biggest change was the facilities. It wasn’t just because we were doing well and the school was giving us more funding.

The New World Big Mart Cup was the first high school baseball tournament with prize money, and it’s still the only one. The amount was a generous 70 million won, befitting a large corporation. That wasn’t all.

There were banners in front of the school gate and a flood of donations.

As always, the most correct answer in sports is ‘victory.’

“Hey, did you hear the news?”

“What news?”

“Senior Byung-young.”

“I haven’t heard anything special other than that he got into Dongho University. Why? Is there any news?”

“He started in the tournament this time and gave up 2 runs in 5.1 innings.”

“Really? He’s already starting as a freshman?”

“Yeah, honestly, considering the level of college baseball, Senior Byung-young should be able to start.”

“Even so, Dongho University is pretty tough. Didn’t they send four players early to the pros last year?”

“It seems like that opened up some pitching spots. They seem to be pushing players who show potential to go pro.”

It’s hard to say whether high school or college league is better. There’s a clear physical difference between teenagers and twenty-year-olds. But considering that the most talented 18-year-olds all go pro and only the remaining players go to college, it’s hard to say that college league is better than high school league.

Anyway, even considering that, it’s impressive that Mung-gae started as a freshman and gave up 2 runs in 5.1 innings. Mung-gae couldn’t do 5.1 innings with 2 runs allowed in high school league.

“He must have been in good condition that day. 5.1 innings with 2 runs allowed.”

“Senior Jin-woo said he learned a new curveball and it was amazing.”

“Senior Jin-woo? He still contacts Mung-gae?”

“Yeah, he even went to see the game in person?”

“That’s amazing. Dongho University is in the D region, so even if it’s close, the game must have been in Daegu.”

“It was in Busan.”

“Wow, so he went from Seoul to Busan? He’s a real angel. An angel.”

Was it because of the advice I gave him to pick number 3 if he didn’t know the answer? [A reference to a multiple-choice test strategy.]

Senior Jin-woo did very well on the college entrance exam. He heard that his score was much better than all the practice exams he had taken. It’s not a prestigious university that everyone knows, but it’s still a good enough school to take the subway to.

He bought a lot of hamburgers and pizzas and came to visit the day after we won the New World Big Mart Cup and the day after we won the Golden Lion flag. He was definitely a true senior compared to a guy like Mung-gae.

“By the way, Soo-won, what are you really going to do?”

“Me? What am I going to do?”

“Are you going to the Marlins or to the US? It’s crazy around me. Even my mom is more curious about whether you’re going to the Marlins or to the US than about my draft. The KBO-US player contract agreement revision that was announced this time. The media is saying it’s aimed at you.”

“I don’t know. The agency will take care of that.”

***

“Oh, Director Jeon. What brings you here?”

“Haha, I was passing by and remembered the taste of that samgyetang [Korean ginseng chicken soup] I had last time, so I stopped by.”

“Ah, that restaurant’s samgyetang is really good. How about it? Should I order two bowls?”

“I already placed a delivery order on my way here. It should be arriving soon.”

The two men sat facing each other with bowls of steaming samgyetang.
Temporing in high school baseball is strictly prohibited. But as always, rules are what you make of them. [Temporing refers to influencing a player’s performance through illicit means.]

Fortunately, attorney Kim Tae-geun was Choi Soo-won’s Korean agent and also the agent for Marlins player Kwon Ho-young.

“Speaking of which, I heard Ho-young is doing very well in the minor leagues these days. Manager Yang is considering bringing him up to the majors soon.”

“Oh, really? Well, it’s summer, so the players must be feeling a bit tired.”

“Haha, it’s summer, so that’s how it is.”

“Ah, that’s right, what you said last time. If the Marlins win the championship, anything is possible.”

“That’s right. That’s the ultimate goal of every team. Integrated championship!!”

“But the championship isn’t something that can be achieved with individual strength. If one person out of 25 players could win the championship, it wouldn’t explain why Bonds didn’t win a ring with the Giants.”

“That’s because the Giants spent so much money on Bonds that it wasn’t easy to acquire other players. Wouldn’t the situation be a little different?”

“We’ll have to see if the situation is different. So, let’s add one more condition.”

“Add? What are you talking about adding?”

“MVP or championship. How about that?”

Rookie MVP. And the Marlins’ championship.

Director Jeon didn’t hesitate for even a second. It was obvious which condition was more difficult.

“No, you’re putting the MVP on the same level as the championship. I’m a little disappointed.”

Even after the last championship in ’92, the Marlins had two league MVPs. For reference, the Marlins’ record that year was 5th and 4th. If having a league MVP could win the championship, it wouldn’t be the Marlins. But giving a player who received 2 billion won in signing bonus to the US after he ‘only’ won the MVP once? It wouldn’t be surprising if dynamite was delivered to the office by quick service [a Korean delivery service].

“Haha, let’s talk about that part in detail. The US market won’t open for another three weeks. How about an iced Americano for coffee?”

Only three weeks until the international prospect contract market opens on July 3rd.

“Attorney Kim. Weren’t we trying to create a win-win situation? If you keep doing this, I’ll get fired.”
“Huh, the MVP isn’t easy. Aren’t you exaggerating?”

“No, it’s not like there hasn’t been a rookie MVP in the KBO. I think Choi Soo-won has enough potential. Don’t you think?”

“Haha, is that so? Then how about this?”

Kim Tae-geun raised his index and middle fingers.

“Twice?”