The Hanwha Eagles have been one of the most aggressive in reinforcing their offseason roster. They signed free agent infielder Shim Woo-jun, 29, to a four-year, $5 billion contract ($4.2 billion guaranteed, $800 million in incentives) and pitcher Uhm Sang-baek to a four-year, $7.8 billion contract ($6.65 billion guaranteed, $1.15 billion in incentives). Shim and Uhm will travel to Miyazaki, Japan, where Hanwha’s final camp is underway, to meet with the team on May 18th.

The signing of Shim was Hanwha’s first priority for the Stoble League. Shim, who joined KT Wiz in the 2014 second round with the 14th overall pick, made his first-team debut in 2015 and has appeared in 1072 career games, batting .254 with 275 RBI and 156 stolen bases (0.788 stolen base success rate).

He was the 2020 stolen base champion, and he also has great range on defense.

“The addition of Woo-joon Shim strengthens our infield depth by providing us with a stable shortstop with the quick feet and operational skills we are looking for in the field,” Hanwha said at the time of the signing.

“Woo-jun has the ability to play more than 100 games a season and be a mainstay of our center field next season with his steady and reliable defense,” said Hanwha manager Son Hyuk, adding, ”He will help the team in many ways, as he can put pressure on the opposing pitcher when he is on base due to the introduction of pitch clock.”

Shim also cited “defense and baserunning” as his strengths, saying, “I think that’s why I came here in good conditions. I’m going to play to my strengths and try to get 20 to 30 stolen bases,” he said.

While his defense and focus were considered among the best in his age group, his batting average, which is still in the mid-2s, 메이저사이트 has led to controversy over his overpayment. Although he is still in his 20s and has clear strengths, it was pointed out that it is difficult to be a force in the batting lineup.

Hanwha manager Kim Kyung-moon drew a line in the sand on the ‘overpay’ controversy. “The word ‘overpaid’ can be a burden, but I don’t think it’s overpaid,” Kim said. I think Shim can be as good as a 10-win pitcher with defense and base running rather than offensive metrics,” Kim said.

Hitting won’t be a problem either.

After returning from a stint with the Mets, Shim batted 2-for-6 in 53 games this season, but he could improve on that.

“I don’t know how I’m going to change my batting form because I have to discuss it with my hitting coach, but if I do, I hope I’ll bring a batting mechanic that utilizes my quicker feet. It would be good for the team and good for me if my batting average and on-base percentage increase. I think I can hit better than I am now,” he said.

Shim’s excellent defense could also pay dividends. “(Shim) will help our pitchers a lot because we have more defense at shortstop,” Kim said, adding, ”(Lee) Do-yoon did a good job this year and did a good job. We have an idea of how to use him as he is,” Kim explained.

Kim continued, “Free agency is something that is evaluated after it’s over. You can’t talk about failures and successes as soon as you arrive,” Kim said, adding that he hopes Shim will be successful.