Yankees' 3.4 billion won offer rejected! Why did Busan High's Ha Hyun-seung stay in Korea? "I saw seniors succeeding in the KBO and found hope" [Interview]

*This content was translated by AI.

Ha Hyun-seung (18), a two-way player at Busan High, revealed why he turned down a strong offer from the prestigious Major League Baseball (MLB) club, the New York Yankees, and chose to remain in Korea.

In a phone interview with StarNews on the 29th, Ha Hyun-seung said, "This was my own decision. I felt I still had much to improve and needed to gain experience. I wanted to grow steadily in Korea before challenging myself in the United States."

On the previous day (the 29th), Ha Hyun-seung publicly announced his decision to stay in Korea via his social media. In his statement, he began by saying, "I sincerely thank everyone who showed great interest and support regarding my career path."

He continued, "I was truly honored to receive significant interest from multiple MLB clubs. It was a stage I had always dreamed of. After thorough discussions with my parents and Busan High coach Park Gye-won, I decided to begin my professional career in the KBO League. I believed it was more important to build my fundamentals and gain experience in the KBO League, learning from excellent seniors and growing."

The MLB's interest in Ha Hyun-seung was indeed real. Since his first year at Busan High, he attracted attention from scouts both domestically and internationally due to his exceptional physical condition and surprising flexibility for his build. He inherited athletic genes from his father, a former high jump national team member, and his mother, who was a long jump national team reserve.

As a pitcher, he was highly praised for his powerful fastball reaching up to 152 km/h at a high release point and a slider of the highest high school level. As a batter, his contact ability was also highly rated. Although he focused on two-way play and did not participate in defense for a while, his exceptional defensive instincts during his time as an outfielder led many domestic and international scouts to compare him to Choo Shin-soo (44) during his high school years.

By his third year, he surpassed other top prospects like Eom Jun-sang (18) from Deoksu High and Kim Ji-woo (18) from Seoul High, both previously classified as part of the same "Big Three," and entered the radar of MLB scouts. According to StarNews' investigation, the New York Yankees, who had the highest international draft bonus pool this year, offered a signing bonus of around 2.3 million dollars (approximately 3.4 billion won) and actively pursued him. One team from the American League West Division and one from the National League Central Division also joined the bidding.

His prospects also closely resemble those of Busan High senior Choo Shin-soo. During his time at Busan High, Choo Shin-soo was also a two-way player, but at graduation, his talent as a pitcher was evaluated even higher. Similarly, Ha Hyun-seung gained attention in his third year primarily for his abilities as a pitcher.

Notably, despite making changes to his pitching form last winter, he improved the completion of his slider, earning the reputation of being untouchable on the high school stage. His stats this year—7 games, 2 wins, no losses, 0.00 ERA, 23 innings, 8 walks, 38 strikeouts, and a WHIP (walks plus hits per inning pitched) of 0.65—further demonstrated his dominance.

However, the Yankees viewed Ha Hyun-seung as a batter. Ha Hyun-seung stated, "The Yankees saw me more favorably as a batter than as a pitcher. They offered to let me try as a two-way player, and I liked those terms, but I felt I could do well enough in Korea as well. I believe going to the U.S. through the posting system from a better environment is currently my biggest goal."

Recently, seniors who have successfully established themselves in the KBO League despite being rookies also influenced his decision. Although the sample size is still small, Park Jun-hyun (19, Kiwoom Heroes), who has shown promising results with 5 games, 1 win, 1 loss, and a 2.84 ERA, is a representative example.

Ha Hyun-seung's decision to stay in Korea brought a smile to Kiwoom Heroes, who hold the first overall pick in this year's draft. In the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft scheduled for September this year, Ha Hyun-seung being selected first overall is currently the most likely scenario. As a batter this year, Ha Hyun-seung posted outstanding stats in 13 games: a .488 batting average (21 hits in 43 at-bats), 3 home runs, 15 RBIs, 12 runs scored, 1 stolen base, a .589 on-base percentage, a .837 slugging percentage, and a 1.426 OPS, giving KBO clubs a happy dilemma.

A KBO scout who watched the Golden Lion Cup recently praised Ha Hyun-seung, saying, "Ha Hyun-seung showed why he is a top overall pick candidate. His fast fastball and sharp slider are at a level difficult for high schoolers to handle. In terms of tunneling and breaking, he is at the highest level. As a batter, his ability to produce extra-base hits has improved compared to last year."

Ha Hyun-seung candidly shared his feelings, saying, "I did consider going to the U.S., but I thought players there might face less environmental stress, and I wondered if I would struggle with that aspect."

He further emphasized, "First, I want to go to the U.S. after becoming proficient in both pitching and hitting in Korea. I saw many seniors succeeding in the first division and felt hopeful. I do not think the Korean professional baseball level is low; I feel there is much to learn. Additionally, I felt that environmentally, I could learn more freely and comfortably from seniors without hesitation."

Regarding the expectations from KBO fans that have already begun, Ha Hyun-seung adopted a cautious attitude. He said, "It would be great if I were selected first overall. But I might not be picked..." while holding back, then added, "Since I said I would join the KBO League, it is natural to want to be number one in Korea. Although there has never been a successful case in Korea yet, I want to be remembered as a player who excels in both pitching and hitting."

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*This content was translated by AI.