[Official] 'Shock': KIA's bold, unilateral move to fill the Asia quota with an infielder ends with a release notice. "Negotiating to sign a pitcher who previously played in the KBO." Starting anew with a new player.

*This content was translated by AI.

Ahead of this season, KIA Tigers became the only one of the 10th teams to fill its Asia quota with an infielder rather than a pitcher. It was a truly bold, unilateral move. The man behind it was 26-year-old Australian Jered Dale. However, he ultimately failed to make a significant impact and received a release notice. KIA now plans to sign a new Asia quota player. For now, the team has placed 25-year-old Keisho Shirakawa, who previously played in the KBO League, on its acquisition list and is entering negotiations.

On the 26th, the KIA organization officially announced, "We have submitted a waiver public notice for Asia quota infielder Jered Dale to the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) today."

It further added, "Accordingly, KIA plans to sign a new Asia quota player in the near future."

The Asia quota system was introduced for the first time in the KBO League this year. While the other nine teams besides KIA all completed their pitcher acquisitions under the Asia quota, KIA took a different path. It uniquely selected an infielder. Investing a total of $150,000 (approximately 226 million won, similar to Hanwha's investment), KIA signed Dale.

There was a reason. Park Chan-ho, who had served as the team's regular starting shortstop, became a free agent (FA) and moved to the Doosan Bears, creating a vacancy. After careful consideration, KIA ultimately decided to sign Dale, who can defend all infield positions.

Dale, originally from Melbourne, Australia, generated significant expectations before the season opener. He first stepped onto the professional stage with the Melbourne Aces in the Australian Baseball League (ABL) in 2016. He also gained experience in the United States, signing a minor league contract with the San Diego Padres in 2019 and playing a total of six seasons, including two in Triple-A. Last season, he joined the Orix Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a developmental foreign player, appearing in 41 games in the Futures League with a batting average of 0.297, 35 hits, 2 home runs, 14 RBIs, and 12 runs scored. In March, Dale also represented Australia at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC).

However, he ultimately failed to establish a connection with the Korean stage. Unfavorable signs appeared even during spring training. In 11 spring training games, he posted a poor batting average of 0.129 (4 hits in 31 at-bats), with 1 walk, 5 strikeouts, and 2 runs scored.

Dale also failed to show a dominant performance during the regular season. In 34 games, he recorded a batting average of 0.256 (30 hits in 117 at-bats), 1 home run, 4 doubles, 6 RBIs, 20 runs scored, 13 walks, 14 strikeouts, a slugging percentage of 0.316, an on-base percentage of 0.328, an OPS (on-base plus slugging) of 0.644, and a batting average with runners in scoring position of 0.174. Most notably, he committed 9 errors, often leaving his head bowed.

Of course, his attitude toward baseball was always sincere. Lee Beom-ho, KIA's manager, expressed trust in Dale, saying, "He is a truly grateful player. Dale holds the bat very short and tries hard to get on base in any way possible. His determination to hit the ball is impressive. It makes me feel that even among our domestic players, he should be the first to show this kind of approach. Seeing him think deeply about holding the bat short suggests he has a very high level of focus on the game. As he adapts to the league, I believe he will be able to showcase his unique style of baseball even better."

However, Dale failed to live up to the manager's trust. On the 11th, he was ultimately removed from the first-team roster and sent down to the second team. At the time of his removal, his recent 10-game performance showed a batting average of 0.138 (4 hits in 29 at-bats). As Dale struggled, KIA's offensive flow was frequently disrupted. Nevertheless, after being sent down to the second team, he posted a batting average of 0.364 (8 hits in 22 at-bats), 1 RBI, 7 runs scored, 1 double, 1 walk, 2 strikeouts, a slugging percentage of 0.409, and an on-base percentage of 0.391 in the Futures League. Ultimately, however, he had to leave the KIA uniform.

Meanwhile, with Dale's departure, KIA is now considering a pitcher for the Asia quota. That player is Shirakawa. In a conversation with StarNews, a KIA official stated regarding Shirakawa's signing, "We are currently in negotiations, but nothing has been officially finalized yet." If there are no major issues in final procedures such as medical tests, he is expected to wear the KIA uniform. Shirakawa first stepped onto the KBO League stage through the SSG Landers last year before moving to Doosan. As an ace for the Tokushima Indigo Socks of the Japanese independent league, he made 12 appearances in the 2024 season, recording 4 wins, 5 losses, and an ERA of 5.65. Over a total of 57 1/3 innings, he allowed 59 hits (6 home runs), issued 33 walks, hit 3 batters, recorded 46 strikeouts, and gave up 41 runs (36 earned).

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*This content was translated by AI.