A total of 19 players are eligible for free agency in the KBO in 2024. Each team can sign up to two players.
The KBO released a list of 19 players who have been approved for free agency out of the 34 players who were announced as free agents in 2024.
The list includes LG's Im Chan-gyu, Ham Deok-joo, Kim Min-sung, Oh Ji-hwan, KT's Kim Jae-yoon, Joo Kwon, SSG's Kim Min-sik, Doosan's Hong Gun-hee, Yang Seok-hwan, KIA's Kim Sun-bin, Ko Jong-wook, Lotte's Ahn Chi-hong, Jeon Jun-woo, Samsung's Kim Dae-woo, Oh Seung-hwan, Kang Kang-wool, Hanwha's Jang Min-jae, Kiwoom's Im Chang-min, and Lee Ji-young.
By position, there are nine pitchers (Im Chan-gyu, Ham Deok-joo, Kim Jae-yoon, Joo Kwon, Hong Gun-hee, Kim Daewoo, Oh Seung-hwan, Jang Min-jae, and Lim Chang-min), two catchers (Kim Min-sik and Lee Ji-young), six infielders (Kim Min-sung, Oh Ji-hwan, Yang Suk-hwan, Kim Sun-bin, An Chi-hong, and Kang Han-ul), and two outfielders (Ko Jong-wook and Jeon Jun-woo).
By classification, there are three players in Class A (Joo Kwon, Hong Gun-hee, Yang Seok-hwan), nine in Class B (Lim Chan-kyu, Ham Deok-joo, Kim Min-sung, Oh Ji-hwan, Kim Jae-yoon, Kim Sun-bin, Ahn Chi-hong, Jeon Jun-woo, Lee Ji-young), and seven in Class C (Kim Min-sik, Ko Jong-wook, Kim Daewoo, Oh Seung-hwan, Kang Han-ul, Jang Min-jae, Lim Chang-min).
There are 15 players who have not filed for free agency, including LG Seo Gun-chang, KT Park Kyung-soo, SSG Moon Seung-won, Park Jong-hoon, Lee Jae-won, Choi Jung, Han Yu-seom, NC Shim Chang-min, Doosan Jang Won-joon, KIA Kim Tae-gun, Lotte Park Se-woong, Shin Jeong-rak, Samsung Kim Hun-gon, Koo Ja-uk, and Kiwoom Yong-gyu.
Of the unclaimed players, Jang Won-jun has decided to retire. Seven players - Moon Seung-won, Park Jong-hoon, Choi Jung, Han Yoo-seom, Kim Tae-gun, Park Se-woong, and Koo Ja-uk - are locked into multi-year contracts with their original teams.
Another long-term contract holder, Oh Ji-hwan, has been added to the FA-approved roster. Oh, who was named the Korean Series MVP this year after leading LG to its first title in 29 years, agreed to a six-year, 12.4 billion won ($10 billion guaranteed, $2.4 billion in incentives) multi-year contract with LG in January.
The contract runs from 2024 to 2029, not this year. Although Oh Ji-hwan filed for free agency this time, he will remain under the contract he agreed to with LG, bringing the total number of actual free agents to 18.
When a player files for free agency, he is automatically removed from the 20-man or 25-man roster for outside free agent signings. They do not have to be included in the 35-man roster for the second round of the draft on April 22. Both LG and Oh are likely to have taken this into account when they filed for free agency. For LG, who is rumored to have good depth, it's a way to keep one more player on the roster.
Meanwhile, the 19 2024 free agents announced today are free to sign contracts with any club, including overseas clubs, from the 19th. 온라인카지노 While Yang Seok-hwan, Ahn Chi-hong, and Kim Jae-yoon are categorized as the biggest names, the futures of Im Chan-kyu and Ham Deok-ju, two of LG's title-winning players, are also of interest. Oh Seung-hwan, who qualified for his first free agency in the KBO, and Jeon Jun-woo, who is looking to make a big splash in his second free agency, are also in the spotlight.
In addition, as 19 players were announced as FA-approved players, the KBO can sign up to two FA-approved players from other teams according to Article 173 [Limitations on FA Acquisition] of the KBO Rules. The maximum number of players a team can sign is one if there are 1 to 10 free agents, two if there are 11 to 20, three if there are 21 to 30, and four if there are 31 or more. Last year, when 21 players applied, teams were allowed to sign three outside free agents, and Hanwha (Chae Eun-sung, Lee Taeyang, and Oh Sun-jin) and Lotte each signed three (Yoo Kang-nam, Noh Jin-hyuk, and Han Hyun-hee).
