Slugging outfielder Sung-bum Na agreed to a six-year contract worth US$ 12.6 million with the Kia Tigers of Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) league. The contract ties the richest deal in the history of the league.
Na, 33, helped Korea win the inaugural WBSC Premier12, appearing as a pinch hitter in every game. He also represented his country at the Asia Games 2009 and the Baseball World Cup 2011.
He played 1,080 KBO games for the NC Dinos (2013-2021), hitting 211 home runs and posting a .312 career batting average.
Major League Baseball (MLB) clubs expressed interest in Na after the 2020 and 2021 seasons, but the left-handed outfielder turned down all the offers.
The SSG Landers also announced a significant signing. They agreed to terms with Ivan Nova, a 34-year old Dominican right-handed pitcher who started 227 MLB games for the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, Chicago White Sox and Detroit Tigers from 2010 to 2020.
Nova's one-year contract includes a guaranteed $900,000, that could top through incentives $1.1 million, the maximum allowed to a first-year foreigner.
You might also be interested in:
- MLB CUP reaches thousands of kids in China, Korea, India
- Korea holds first Baseball5 tournament
- Korean National Team coach Jong-kook Kim takes over as Kia Tigers manager
- KT Wiz sweep Doosan Bears, earn their first KBO Korean Series title
- S Korea crowned Premier12 Global Champions, defeat USA 8-0 in Finale
