![[Graphic News] Kim Kwang-hyun becomes KBO's highest-paid player](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwimg.heraldcorp.com%2Fnews%2Fcms%2F2025%2F03%2F19%2Fnews-p.v1.20250319.6a23b21cf9c44fdb995ae47e884e7f23_T1.gif&w=3840&q=100)
[Graphic News] Kim Kwang-hyun becomes KBO's highest-paid player
Kim's standout performance in the 2024 season, which included 13 wins, 3 losses and a 2.12 ERA, helped lead SSG to a Korean Series championship and earned him the top spot in the league's ERA rankings.
Following Kim, Ryu Hyun-jin of the Hanwha Eagles, KT Wiz pitcher Ko Young-pyo and Samsung Lions outfielder Koo Ja-wook tied for second place, each with a salary of 2 billion won.
This growing trend of multiyear contracts reflects teams' increasing efforts to retain key players and provide long-term financial stability. As a result, salaries in Korean professional baseball are rising, underscoring the league's increasing competitiveness and teams' financial commitment to securing top talent in pursuit of championship glory.
don@heraldcorp.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Korea Herald
16 hours ago
- Korea Herald
K League champions Ulsan HD part ways with head coach Kim Pan-gon
The three-time defending South Korean football champions Ulsan HD FC announced Friday they have terminated their contract with head coach Kim Pan-gon, barely a year after hiring him. Ulsan HD said the decision was reached through a mutual agreement between the club and the departing coach. Kim will coach his final match at 7 p.m. Saturday against Suwon FC at Munsu Football Stadium in Ulsan, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Ulsan HD brought in Kim on July 28 last year to replace Hong Myung-bo, who had left for the South Korean men's national team after coaching Ulsan HD to back-to-back K League 1 titles in 2022 and 2023. They were in their season-low fourth place when Kim was hired, but won eight of their first 11 matches under the new coach to claim their third consecutive title. Kim had played for Ulsan's championship squad in 1996, making him the first man to win the league title with Ulsan both as player and head coach. This year, Ulsan HD put together an early three-match winning streak, seemingly on their way to another title, before fading away badly. They are winless in their past six league matches, leaving them in seventh place among 12 clubs with 31 points -- 23 behind the league-leading Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors with 15 matches left. Kim had been under pressure to step down for weeks. When he coached Team K League in a friendly match against Newcastle United on Wednesday, some Ulsan HD fans chanted, "Kim Pan-gon, get out!" before the kickoff. Kim said after the match he hadn't heard the chants and said he would try to right the ship in August. Former South Korean national team head coach Shin Tae-yong is believed to be in line to succeed Kim, who claimed he'd found about his dismissal through a media report Thursday before the club had even contacted him. Also Friday, Ulsan HD CEO Kim Gwang-guk resigned after 10 years on the job.
Korea Herald
17 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Poland signs $6.5 billion deal to purchase 2nd batch of K2 tanks
Poland on Friday signed a deal worth about US$6.5 billion to purchase the second batch of K2 tanks from major South Korean defense contractor Hyundai Rotem Co., Seoul's defense ministry said. The deal marks the largest-ever arms export contract won by a South Korean company and the first major one since the launch of the Lee Jae Myung administration in June. Under the deal, Poland will be supplied with 180 K2 tanks and 81 other support vehicles. It follows up on a contract Poland signed in 2022 for the first batch of 180 K2 tanks amid a major armament push after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While the ministry did not specify the exact terms of the latest deal, 117 of the 180 tanks will reportedly be built by Hyundai Rotem, while the rest will be produced by Poland's state-owned defense company PGZ. The ministry said the latest contract includes production of a Polish variant of the K2 and development of other armored support vehicles, while opening the possibility of joint production and exports. South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back and his Polish counterpart, Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, attended the signing ceremony between Hyundai Rotem and Poland's armament agency in Gliwice in southern Poland. "Through the signing of the second K2 executive contract, (we) have created an opportunity to solidify our strategic partnership beyond a simple relationship between a supplier and a user," Ahn was quoted as saying at the ceremony. Before the ceremony, Ahn held talks with Kosiniak-Kamysz to discuss ways to deepen their countries' cooperation in the arms industry. Ahn pledged support and training for Poland's use of Korean weapons systems, including the K2 and K9 self-propelled howitzers, and also proposed cooperation in Warsaw's other defense projects, including its plan to acquire submarines. Ahn also invited his Polish counterpart to Seoul, to which Kosiniak-Kamysz replied he would make the visit at an early date, according to the ministry.
Korea Herald
20 hours ago
- Korea Herald
Hanwha says US Navy chief toured Philly Shipyard ahead of Korea-US tariff deal
US Navy Secretary John Phelan and White House Budget Director Russell Vought visited Hanwha Group's Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia on Wednesday, just hours before South Korea and the US finalized their new tariff agreement, Hanwha said Friday. The visit is seen as a contributing factor in the deal, with a shipbuilding partnership between the two countries reportedly playing a key role. According to Hanwha, Phelan and Vought toured major production facilities at the Philadelphia site, guided by Hanwha Group Vice Chair Kim Dong-kwan, alongside other senior US government officials. The US delegation also visited Hanwha's welding training center and inspected equipment relocated from the company's Hanwha Ocean shipyard in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province. Hanwha said the American officials' visit focused on reviewing the company's investments to bolster local shipbuilding capacity. Phelan emphasized that establishing a robust marine industry foundation was a top priority for both the Trump administration and the US Navy. Kim reiterated Hanwha's commitment to supporting the revitalization of US shipbuilding by establishing new shipyards and developing related industrial networks. On the day of the visit, Korea and the US agreed to reduce the planned reciprocal tariffs on imports to the US from 25 percent to 15 percent, including on automobiles and auto parts. Hanwha cited a US government source as saying that feedback from the delegation was delivered to US President Donald Trump and influenced the final outcome of the deal. During negotiations, Korea proposed the "Make American Shipbuilding Great Again," or MASGA, an initiative aimed at revitalizing the US shipbuilding industry. Of the $350 billion Korea pledged to invest in the US as part of the agreement, $150 billion will be allocated to enhancing the shipbuilding partnership. Kim also traveled to the US to support the negotiations. Hanwha's Philadelphia Shipyard, acquired for $100 million in 2024, has been positioned as a symbol of Korean support for the US shipbuilding industry. Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo, a member of Korea's tariff negotiation team, said business leaders, including Kim, worked closely with the government by sharing strategic information and leveraging their networks. 'I believe their support definitely contributed to the success of the deal," Yeo said in a briefing after the tariff deal concluded on Wednesday. Hanwha plans to expand the shipyard as a center for shipbuilding, maintenance, overhaul and repair for US naval vessels. The company said it will apply production and operations systems used in Korea to increase annual capacity from one ship to 10 by 2035.
