'Former Hanwha' Liberatto is heading to Taiwan! The announcement was made in person after the game ended on the 6th→The contract team is not yet 'unveiled'

*This content was translated by AI.

Outfielder Luis Liberato (31, Los Del Este), who played as an alternative foreign player for the Hanwha Eagles in the 2025 season, will head to the Taiwan Professional Baseball League (CPBL), not the KBO league.

David Alcantara, a reporter who mainly deals with Dominican baseball news, wrote on his SNS on the 6th (Korea Standard Time), "According to a source, Luis Liberato is no longer playing as a member of Los Del Este." LIDOM Trade Rumors, an account that mainly deals with Dominican Winter League news, also cited the news and left an answer to local fans asking why, saying, "Don't forget Liberato played in Korea."

After the game, reporter Alcantara posted a video of the interview with Liberato and reported, "I'm heading to the Taiwan League." Liberato expressed his complicated feelings in an interview, saying, "I'm happy to sign a new contract, but I'm somewhat disappointed about leaving the team." However, Liberato did not disclose the club that signed the contract. There have been no related reports in the Taiwanese media yet.

Currently, the round robin schedule, which is the postseason of the Dominican Winter League, is underway. According to the league's official website, Los Angeles Este's game has been allocated until the 18th. However, news that Liberato will drop out has raised questions even among local fans. Some fans asked if he would go back to Korea during the match on the 6th.

But Liberato headed to Taiwan. Liberato, who failed to sign a contract with his former team Hanwha Eagles for the 2026 season, has been registered on the Dominican Winter League roster since December 9 last year. Riverato, who returned to his home country, appealed for the 2026 season and eventually succeeded in signing a contract with the Taiwanese club in the 2026 season.

Riverato was a substitute for Esteban Floral (28) in June and played a decent role in the Hanwha uniform. He played 62 games in the regular league and recorded a batting average of 0.313 (77 hits in 246 at-bats) with 10 home runs and 39 RBIs with an OPS of 0.890, but not a bad record. However, in the Korean series with the LG Twins, he suffered a slump in batting average of 0.111 (2 hits in 18 at-bats) in five games and unfortunately broke up with Hanwha. The center fielder's defense, which was somewhat lacking, was also hampered. Jonathan Peraza (28) will fill Liberato's vacancy in Hanwha in the upcoming 2026 season.

Liberato, who joined Los Angeles Este midway, batted .321 (7 hits in 28 at-bats) with one home run, six RBIs and an OPS of 0.867 in seven regular season games in the Dominican Winter League. In the postseason except for the game on the 6th, he hit .407 (11 hits in 28 at-bats) with one homer and eight RBIs in eight games. The postseason OPS reaches a whopping 1.077.

Taiwan is recently considered one of the preferred destinations for foreign players from KBO. Recently, even Lotte Giants legend Lee Dae-ho (44) announced that he would head to the Jungshin Brothers batting instructor. If Liberato achieves an overwhelming performance in Taiwan, it will be a foothold to knock on the Korean stage again in the future.

<© STARNEWS. All rights reserved. No reproduction or redistribution allowed.>

*This content was translated by AI.