It is a fully guaranteed contract with no options. SSG Landers honored its franchise star Choi Jung (37) and showed its trust in him.
On the sixth day of the free agency market, SSG announced that it had signed Choi Jung for a four-year contract totaling 11 billion won. This includes a down payment of 3 billion won and an annual salary of 8 billion won.
SSG’s signing of Choi didn’t come as a surprise.
SSG was determined to keep Choi, who has been called the “heart of the Landers” and has become an iconic part of the team, and prioritized keeping Choi, who has been with SSG for 20 years.
Although a non-free agent multi-year contract was not reached and Choi applied for approval to exercise his free agent rights, SSG made an unusual ‘contract notice’ to prevent any misunderstanding.
“We met with Choi and spoke positively with him on the 4th. The player’s side wants to proceed with a free agent contract, so we will announce it after the contract is signed on the 6th, when the free agent market opens.”
As scheduled,
The official announcement was made on the afternoon of the 6th after Choi and the SSG organization met and signed the contract.
What caught our eye was the contract language. It was a “fully guaranteed deal” with no options.
Options are a safety valve for teams that spend big on free agents. Usually, when signing a free agent contract, 메이저사이트 clubs try to include options and players try to increase the guaranteed amount.
But Choi’s free agent contract with SSG didn’t have an option.
When SSG first presented Choi with the terms of his contract, it wasn’t without options, but shortly after negotiations began, they decided to remove them altogether.
“We were thinking about how to build Choi’s ego, and we didn’t want to drag out the contract,” says SSG head coach Kim Jae-hyun. There was also a dimension of honoring him as an iconic player.”
Guaranteeing the full 11 billion won ($11.1 million) also shows the club’s trust in Choi.
The key to Choi becoming the KBO’s all-time home run leader is consistency.
He is the only player in KBO history to hit double-digit home runs in 19 consecutive seasons. From 2016 to this year, he has also hit 20 home runs in nine consecutive seasons.
He is synonymous with integrity. Those who have followed him for a long time say that he is a “baseball idiot.” He also takes care of his body.
Even in his late 30s, Choi has remained healthy this year, batting .291 with 37 home runs and 107 RBIs and an OPS of .978. He ranked third in home runs, ninth in RBI, and fifth in OPS.
“Signing a free agent contract is not about looking back, it’s about looking forward,” Kim said. ”I’ve seen him in the best shape of his life, and I’ve seen him take care of his body. Even though I am in my late 30s, I am confident that I can deliver the performance expected of me for the next four years,” said Kim.
“A fully guaranteed contract is not only an ego boost, it’s also a sign of 100% trust.”