Yang Seok-hwan (32, Doosan Bears) enjoyed the benefits of the preliminary free agent season.
On the 26th, Doosan announced the results of the 2023 salary negotiations. Yang Seok-hwan earned 400 million won, up 10 million won from last year’s 390 million won. It boasts the highest ransom among those subject to internal salary negotiations at Doosan.
In fact, Yang Seok-hwan spent a season close to being subject to a salary cut last year. He only played in 107 games in the aftermath of a side injury, and had a batting average of .244 (99 hits in 405 at-bats), 20 home runs, and 51 RBIs. Although he ranked second on the team in home runs, all batting indicators dropped noticeably compared to the 2021 season. In 2021, he had a career high season with a batting average of 0.273 (133 hits in 488 at-bats), 28 homers and 96 RBIs in 133 games.
Doosan still chose a slight increase instead of a cut. Prospective free agents often receive a salary increase regardless of their performance in the previous season. This is because when the player transfers to another club as an FA, the amount of compensation is determined by the annual salary of the previous season. It is the least defensive means the club can choose.
It is also a way to put strength on Yang Seok-hwan’s shoulders. Yang Seok-hwan, along with Kim Jae-hwan (35) and Yang Eui-ji (36), should be responsible for the long hitting power of the team again this year. Although promising players with long hitting skills such as Kim Min-hyeok (27), Kim Dae-han (23), and Song Seung-hwan (23) are waiting, Yang Seok-hwan is a proven big shot who has hit 20 home runs in the last two years in a row. In the new season, it can be interpreted as meaning to put more weight on the other line as the highest non-FA player in the team. 먹튀검증
Doosan coach Lee Seung-yeop asked Yang Seok-hwan to work hard in an individual meeting. Yang Seok-hwan said, “The manager said that he would like to have good results in a more responsible way in the center of the batting line. He sympathized and agreed a lot, and had many conversations like that with the manager.”
The top priority is to achieve as good a result as the 2021 season and help captain Heo Gyeong-min (33) lead the team back to the fall stage. Yang Seok-hwan said, “I am not young at Doosan, and I try to take good care of my juniors from camp and lead them. I will try to do my best,” he said.
Can Seok-hwan Yang live up to the club’s expectations by building a strong center lineup for Doosan this year, and even hit the FA jackpot?