Why was the signing bonus for "giant rookie" Ha Hyun-seung exactly 1.6 billion won? → Kiwoom: "Referenced Shohei Ohtani's case when he joined Nippon-Ham in Japan"

*This content was translated by AI.

As Kiwoom Heroes finalized a contract with Ha Hyun-seung (18), a promising pitcher-batter dual-role prospect from Busan High School, who was selected first overall in the 2027 KBO Rookie Draft, for a record-breaking signing bonus of 1.6 billion won—the highest in Korean professional baseball history—it has been confirmed that the case of "superstar" Shohei Ohtani (32·LA Dodgers) during his rookie years was directly considered as the decisive background for this exceptional treatment.

On the 7th, immediately after announcing Ha Hyun-seung's rookie contract, the Kiwoom organization disclosed the background and specific process behind setting Ha Hyun-seung's record-high signing bonus through its official channels. Kiwoom stated, "In early July of last year, when Ha Hyun-seung expressed his intention to participate in the KBO League Rookie Draft, we had already internally confirmed our decision to select him first overall and immediately began concrete discussions regarding the signing bonus."

According to the Kiwoom organization, the firm primary principle established for Ha Hyun-seung's contract was not only to break the previous KBO rookie record of 1 billion won set by Han Ki-ju when he joined the KIA Tigers in 2006, but also to "provide the best treatment to the best player, Ha Hyun-seung." To find a benchmark, Kiwoom extensively examined cases from other domestic sports as well as baseball, but failed to find an appropriate comparable case.

Consequently, the benchmark Kiwoom focused on was Shohei Ohtani, the world's top icon of dual-role pitching and batting. The organization highly evaluated Ha Hyun-seung's unique ability to handle both pitching and batting at the highest level, similar to Ohtani. In particular, they carefully referenced the value of the total rookie signing bonus of 150 million yen (approximately 1.3 billion won) that Ohtani received in 2013 when he joined the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) after graduating from high school, and derived this substantial amount of 1.6 billion Won I-ra-neun (EVP)won.

Ha Hyun-seung's bold "decision to stay in Korea" was also a decisive factor. Ha had received an exceptional offer of over 3 million dollars (approximately 4 billion won) from the prestigious New York Yankees of Major League Baseball, but after much deliberation, he chose to challenge himself on the domestic stage rather than going directly overseas. The Kiwoom organization respected the player's firm will and decision, responding with a fair and exceptional treatment commensurate with it.

The Kiwoom organization stated, "We have consistently concluded contracts with both existing players and rookie players by comprehensively considering not only their current value but also their potential." It added, "Under this policy, Ha Hyun-seung's signing bonus was also carefully determined. We will spare no effort to support Ha Hyun-seung, who has announced his new beginning wearing the Heroes uniform, so that he can settle into the professional stage smoothly and grow into a top-tier player."

After completing the contract, Ha Hyun-seung expressed his resolve, saying, "I sincerely thank the Heroes organization for highly evaluating my value." He continued, "I will learn a lot and grow alongside my brilliant senior players who have advanced to Major League Baseball and other excellent seniors. I will prepare thoroughly from now on so that I can show you a wonderful performance on the field next season."

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*This content was translated by AI.