Lee Jung-hoo’s major league challenge begins in earnest.

On the 4th, the Kiwoom Heroes announced that Lee Jung-hoo’s Major League posting notice will be made on the 5th Korean time and 4th US Eastern time. Accordingly, from the day after the posting notice, the team will enter into full-scale negotiations for 30 days with 30 major league clubs that want to sign Lee Jung-hoo.

The clubs agreed to respect Lee’s decision to challenge the major leagues earlier this year and promised to actively support him. On November 22, the club submitted documents related to the posting, including Lee’s medical records, to the Korea Baseball Organization, and on November 24, the club requested a major league posting disclosure.

After graduating from Whimun High School and joining the club as the first pick in the 2017 rookie draft, Lee distinguished himself in his debut season, winning the Rookie of the Year award. He continued to improve each season, winning the Golden Glove for five consecutive seasons from 2018 to 2022, and was named MVP in 2022 after winning five batting titles, including batting average, most hits, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, and RBI.

In his seven seasons in the KBO,

Lee has become one of the league’s leading hitters, holding the KBO’s all-time batting average record, and has played in 884 games, amassing 3,476 hits, 1181 runs, 65 home runs, 515 RBIs, 581 runs scored, 69 doubles, and a .340 batting average.

“We wish him the best of luck in his future endeavors as he qualifies for the post and challenges himself on a bigger stage,” said Kiwoom Heroes President Ko Hyung-wook.

John Heyman, a columnist for the New York Post, reported on his SNS on the 4th that “Korean center fielder Lee Jung-hoo, a former KBO MVP, is expected to be posted as early as tomorrow,” indicating that Lee’s major league challenge is near.

Lee, who boarded a plane for the U.S. on March 28, will sit down with his agent, Scott Boras, 카지노사이트킴 to negotiate in earnest. Interest in Lee is high. More than half of the major league clubs have expressed interest in Lee.

He is currently rated as the second-best free agent center fielder behind Cody Bellinger.

His power is still a question mark, but his contact and defense are good. While some may argue that Lee will struggle to stay in center field, most American media outlets see him as a center fielder.

“The Mets are all-in on Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Orix), but they also have strong interest in South Korean center fielder Lee Jung-hoo,” said USA Today on Thursday, referring to the Mets as the quietest club this winter. San Francisco, the Yankees, the Dodgers, and San Diego have been mentioned as the top teams interested in Lee. San Francisco is considered the most likely destination. The Giants had the team’s top brass visit Kodak Dome during the regular season to see Lee in person, and general manager Pete Putilla was spotted at the final game of the regular season.

If finalized, Lee will be the fourth player to reach the major leagues through the posting system, joining Kang Jeong-ho, Park Byung-ho, and Kim Ha-seong.

Major League Baseball’s 30 clubs will be able to negotiate a contract with Lee from 8 a.m.

ET on the day after the posting is announced by the secretariat until 5 p.m. ET on the 30th day, and if a contract is reached, they will be required to pay a transfer fee to Kiwoom in accordance with the Korea-U.S. Player Contract Agreement. If a contract is not reached by the expiration of the negotiations, the posting will be terminated and Lee will not be eligible for posting until November 1 of the following year.

The transfer fee to be received by the club shall be determined in accordance with the posting system procedures set forth in the current Korea-U.S. Professional Baseball Agreement. If the player’s total guaranteed contract value is $25 million or less, the KBO club will receive 20% of that amount. If the total guaranteed contract amount is $25 million to $50 million, the transfer fee will be 20% of the first $25 million plus 17.5% of the amount in excess of $25 million, and if the total amount is $50 million or more, the transfer fee will be 20% of the first $25 million plus 17.5% of the $25 million to $50 million and 15% of the amount in excess of $50 million.

Lee’s estimated price tag starts at $50 million. MLBTrader.com predicts that Lee will sign a five-year, $50 million deal. Zach Britton of The Athletic predicted four years and $56 million, and CBS Sports predicted a six-year, $90 million deal with an opt-out clause after four years.