[프로야구] Jeong Choi applies for free agency… SSG “Our goal is to meet on the 6th and finalize the contract”

[서울=뉴스핌] Reporter Park Sang-wook = Choi Jeong (37, SSG Landers), ‘No. 1 in home runs in the KBO League’, appears in the free agent market. The SSG club announced on the 4th, “The club and the player met today and talked positively. However, the player wanted to proceed with a free agent contract. We plan to announce the contract on the 6th when the free agent market opens.”

Choi Jeong has been continuously negotiating with the SSG club since the end of September, but decided to reach a conclusion after the 6th when the free agent market opens. Choi Jeong-eun, who exercised his third individual free agent (FA) right, did not break down negotiations with his team SSG, but negotiations continued again through free agency instead of a non-FA multi-year contract.

On the 2nd, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) announced a list of 30 players eligible for free agency, including Choi Jeong. According to the KBO’s announcement, players wishing to enter the free agent market must notify the KBO by the 4th. Afterwards, the actual players who will appear in the free agent market will be announced on the 5th, and negotiations with any team will be possible from the 6th.

Negotiations with SSG, the original team, have already progressed considerably. The SSG club proposed a condition of ‘more than 10 billion won over 4 years’ and is narrowing the difference of opinion with Choi Jeong’s side in ‘detailed details’.

Initially, there was a prediction that “Choi Jeong will sign a ‘non-FA multi-year contract’ before the FA market opens,” but the negotiation period was not enough and Choi Jeong’s side also preferred to ‘sign a contract after obtaining FA qualifications.’

The club also accepted Choi Jeong’s intention. Both the club and Choi Jung agreed, saying, “This is not a strategy to recruit external free agents, such as from the FA protected player list.”

Choi Jeong-eun is highly likely to become the ‘main character of the first FA contract in 2025’. The SSG club, which wanted to sign a non-FA multi-year contract with Choi Jeong, also changed its goal to ‘the first FA contract in 2025’.

Choi Jeong. [사진 = SSG]

Of course, the club strongly wants Choi Jeong to stay, and Choi Jeong’s side also negotiated with SSG as their top priority. Choi Jeong, who started his professional career by being first drafted by SSG’s predecessor, SK Wyverns, in 2005, will likely remain as a ‘one-club man’ if he signs a multi-year free agent contract on the 6th as expected.

In addition, Choi Jeong-eun is expected to write a new history of multi-year contracts in the KBO League. Choi Jeong first qualified as a free agent in 2015 and signed a four-year contract worth 8.6 billion won, and in 2019, he signed a six-year contract worth 10.6 billion won.

If Choi Jeong signs his third free agent contract, Doosan Bears catcher Yang Eui-ji will earn the KBO League’s multi-year record by far exceeding the 27.7 billion won set by Doosan Bears catcher Yang Eui-ji’s two free agent contracts (4-year 12.5 billion won with NC Dinos in 2019 and 6-year 15.2 billion won with Doosan in 2023). Sets record for highest contract amount.

There is a high possibility that we will open the era of FA totals of 30 billion won. Both of Choi Jeong’s previous free agent contracts were evaluated as ‘large contracts’, but in hindsight, they were closer to ‘cheap contracts’. Choi Jeong-eun played in 1,253 games from 2015 to 2024, posting a batting average of 0.284, 327 home runs, 927 RBI, and an OPS of 0.958. During this period, he ranked overwhelmingly first in home runs, RBI, and OPS.

psoq1337@newspim.com