“I dream of throwing 6-7 innings… I want to throw even in social baseball
. ” recorded Kang Ri-ho, who obtained qualification as a free agent (FA), entered the FA market. Kang Ri-ho is a C grade. If a C-class player is recruited by another club, he only needs to compensate 150% of the previous year’s salary without a compensation player. Kang Ri-ho jumped into his market with the idea that if there is a team that wants me, let’s do it one more time because his salary is low.
Kang Ri-ho said on a social media (SNS) broadcast on the 3rd, “I’ve been thinking about applying for FA since August. First, I talked to Seong Min-gyu. ‘What are you thinking? If you go out, you will be lost unconditionally. I said, ‘I said I would quit if I became a lost child’.”
However, there was no new team looking for Kang Ri-ho. It’s because he hasn’t played well in the last few seasons. Kang Ri-ho said, “Since 2020, the idea that baseball is everything has disappeared. I spent three years thinking about whether this path was right. But the most important three years were not the best.” During the 2020 NC Dinos season, Kang Ri-ho recorded an average ERA of 6.86 with 16 runs (16 ERA) in 30 games and 21 innings. Kang Ri-ho, who was traded to Lotte during the 2021 season, marked an average ERA of 8.44 in 22 games, 16 innings, and 15 runs (15 ERA) in the 2021 season. 스포츠토토
Nevertheless, Kang Ri-ho has been looking at FA for three years. And Lotte, the original team, reached out. However, Kang Ri-ho wanted to reserve the right. Regarding the reason for wanting the right to withhold, Kang Ri-ho said, “If you do not sign a contract for more than 4 years as an FA contract, it is a system where you have to continue negotiating the salary after the contract period ends. There was a lot of stress about salary negotiations.” I asked for it because I thought that if I did well this season, I would catch it at a higher price, and if I didn’t, I wouldn’t catch it. But an article came out as if I was saying I would leave Lotte unconditionally.”
Kang Ri-ho showed his will to continue playing baseball even if he could not play professionally. He said, “My parents also told me to stop. I felt relieved after hearing that. Rather than retirement, I don’t think I can do it as a pro,” he said. “Sometimes I dream of throwing 6-7 innings.”
He continued, “There is a saying these days ‘unbreakable mind’. But I think my heart is too broken. Baseball players quit someday, but that time seems to have come sooner than I thought.” I have to throw it at least in baseball as a member of society.”