'Again,' Defensive Free Agents to Strike '5 Billion to 8 Billion Won' Jackpots? The 'Record' Achieved by a Batter Worth 30.7 Billion Won Draws Attention... Will They Laugh Despite Overpayment Controversy? [Ryu Sun-gyu's Bizball]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

When discussing the value of a fielder, batting statistics are usually the first thing that comes to mind. There are various indicators showing offensive contribution, such as batting average, home runs, RBIs, and OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging percentage), making it easy to compare players.

On the other hand, defense has traditionally been evaluated based on errors and fielding percentage, but it is difficult to fully grasp defensive contribution using only these two metrics.

There are defensive errors that do not appear in the record, and similar outcomes of handling batted balls may or may not be recorded as errors depending on the scorer's judgment. Additionally, if a player actively attempts to handle a batted ball but misses it, it can be recorded as an error, whereas if they approach the ball passively and fail to handle it at all, it may not be recorded as an error.

For this reason, defensive innings can be considered an important factor when evaluating a fielder's defensive contribution. Teams reflect pitchers' pitching innings in their annual salary performance evaluations. This is because the fact of taking responsibility for many innings itself is evaluated as a contribution to the team, even if the performance does not meet expectations.

From the same perspective, a fielder's defensive innings can also be examined. Defensive innings show the cumulative amount of time a player has spent on the ground handling defense. While defensive innings do not directly correlate with defensive results, similar to pitching innings, they can serve as an indicator of the extent to which a player has contributed to the team through their role.

We compared 100 player-season records in total, consisting of the top 50 players by defensive innings for each of the 2025 and 2026 seasons. In the table, IP stands for defensive innings, PA for total plate appearances, and DPA for defensive plate appearances. DPA refers to plate appearances recorded while in a defensive position, excluding those as a designated hitter or pinch hitter. DPA% is the proportion of DPA out of total PA.

Looking at the top 10 in defensive innings for both seasons, all 19 players had a DPA% of 0.96 or higher, except for Lewin Diaz (Samsung) who ranked 8th in 2025 with 0.89. This means they recorded almost all of their plate appearances while in a defensive position. This shows that these players consistently appeared in games, handling both batting and defense.

Eight players have made the top 10 in seasonal defensive innings for two consecutive years: Noh Si-hwan (Hanwha), who is challenging Major League Baseball entry through recent posting, Park Hae-min (LG), Kim Ju-won (NC), Choi Ji-hoon (SSG), Park Chan-ho (Doosan), Diaz (Samsung), Jung Su-bin (Doosan), and Park Sung-han (SSG).

These eight players surpassed 1,000 defensive innings in both seasons. They are the only players to have set this record for two consecutive years. Achieving 1,000 defensive innings in a single season is that difficult.

In 2015, when the 144th-game system began, 23 fielders handled more than 1,000 innings, but this number decreased to 13 in 2026. To handle many defensive innings, a player must earn trust in defense enough to be used as a starter, contribute consistently at the plate, and play through the season without major injuries. The scarcity of 1,000 defensive innings can be confirmed by the fact that not many players meet all these conditions.

Recently, in the free agent (FA) market, fielders who use defense as their strength have been signing high-value contracts. Sim Woo-jun, who obtained FA eligibility after the 2024 season, signed a four-year contract worth up to 5 billion won with the Hanwha Eagles. The following year, Park Chan-ho signed a four-year total deal of 8 billion won with Doosan, and Park Hae-min signed a four-year total deal of 6.5 billion won with LG. Judging by OPS, the batting performances of these three players in their pre-FA seasons were far from the top tier of the league. Sim Woo-jun had an OPS of 0.680 and did not meet the minimum plate appearance requirement, Park Chan-ho was ranked 35th with 0.722, and Park Hae-min was ranked 34th with 0.725.

In this FA market, outfielders such as Choi Ji-hoon, Kim Ho-ryeong, and Jung Su-bin, who have defensive strength, are expected to enter the market. Choi Ji-hoon handled 1,196 innings, ranking second in defensive innings this season, with a DPA% of 0.99. Kim Ho-ryeong was fourth with 1,172 innings (DPA% 0.99), and Jung Su-bin was seventh with 1,122 innings (DPA% 1.00). On the other hand, their OPS figures were Choi Ji-hoon 0.716 (38th), Kim Ho-ryeong 0.712 (40th), and Jung Su-bin 0.681 (46th), meaning all three players were far from the top tier of the league. Will those recognized for their defensive value receive good evaluations in the FA market, like Sim Woo-jun, Park Chan-ho, and Park Hae-min?

After the Korea Series ends, the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) discloses the list of players eligible for FA status within five days. Once players apply to exercise their rights and the KBO discloses approved players, FA negotiations begin. This FA market shows signs of overheating as the heightened expectations of players due to Noh Si-hwan's massive 30.7 billion won non-FA contract intersect with the demand for several teams to strengthen their rosters. It is also worth noting how the value of fielder FAs with defensive strengths will be evaluated.

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original