Pittsburgh Pirates' Pedro Alvarez (24) hits a two-run home run against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, Oct. 4, 2013, in St. Louis.Sarah Conard/The Associated Press
Even though the Pittsburgh Pirates employ one of the largest analytics departments in baseball, they are not exactly sure how Kang Jung-ho's outstanding statistics in South Korea will translate to the major leagues.
They are willing to find out.
Pittsburgh and the 27-year-old infielder finalized an $11-million (U.S.), four-year contract on Friday. The deal includes a $5.5-million club option for 2019 with a $1-million buyout.
Meanwhile, closer Mark Melancon was among six of the Pirates' 12 players who filed for arbitration earlier this week who agreed to one-year contracts. The 29-year-old will make $5.4-million, more than double the $2,595,000 he earned last season when he converted 33 of 37 save opportunities and had a 1.90 earned-run average in 72 games.
Kang is trying to become the first position player to make the jump from the Korean Baseball Organization to the major leagues "This is an unprecedented situation, so it's difficult to truly project how he will perform," Pirates general manager Neal Huntington said. "That is why we had multiple people watch him play multiple times. We feel good about bringing him into our organization and we feel that this is going to be a very good investment for our organization."
Kang hit .356 with 40 home runs in 117 games last season for the Nexen Heroes, who play in Seoul. He had a .383 on-base percentage and a .503 slugging percentage.
During his nine-year career in the Korean Baseball Organization, Kang hit .298 batting with 139 homers in 902 games. He also played for South Korea in the World Baseball Classic in 2013.
The Pirates will pay a $5,002,015 posting fee for Kang.
"I'm very excited and humbled by this opportunity," he said in a statement released by the Pirates.
Most stadiums in South Korea are smaller than in the major leagues, but the Pirates expect Kang to hit for power. "He hit a lot of balls in Korea that would have been out of the ballparks in the major leagues, too," Huntington said. "What we really like about him is that he has a good overall approach to hitting."
Kang was primarily a shortstop in South Korea but will begin his career as a utility infielder, backing up second baseman Neil Walker, third baseman Josh Harrison and shortstop Jordy Mercer. Huntington dismissed the idea of having Kang start the season in the minors in an effort to better adjust to the U.S. style of play. "The best way to transition him to the major leagues is by having play in the major leagues," Huntington said. "Our challenge, as it would be with any role player, is giving him enough playing time to stay sharp."
In addition to Melancon, Harrison ($2.8-million), relievers Antonio Bastardo ($3.1-million) and Jared Hughes ($1,075,000), and catchers Chris Stewart ($1,225,000) and Francisco Cervelli ($987,500) agreed to one-year deals.