7:45pm: The deal is complete, per Shea (via Twitter).
3:43pm: The Giants are closing in on a minor league contract with Korean third baseman Jae-gyun Hwang, tweets Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News. The contract, first reported by Naver Sports in Korea, will guarantee Hwang $1.5MM if he makes the big league roster in Spring Training, according to Baggarly. John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets that there are additional incentives beyond that guarantee, with Jee-ho Yoo of Yonhap adding (via Twitter) that they could tack on another $1.6MM. Hwang is represented by GSI and ACES.
Hwang, 29, hit .335/.394/.570 with 27 home runs and 25 stolen bases last season, demonstrating an ability to sustain the power increase he showed during the 2015 season. Hwang also boosted his walk rate while more than halving his strikeout rate, which likely further piqued the Giants’ interest in his services.
Unlike last winter, Hwang was an unrestricted free agent this offseason (having accrued the requisite nine years of service time in the Korea Baseball Organization) and thus did not need to be posted by his former club, the Lotte Giants. He reportedly turned down a “sizable” offer from his former team and was also pursued by the KBO’s KT Wiz, but he’s been said to be willing to accept less money for the opportunity to pursue a Major League career. While the exact nature of that offer isn’t known, Hwang’s deal with San Francisco is presumably less lucrative in the short-term but obviously creates the opportunity for considerably better financial compensation down the line.
The Giants don’t have a clear-cut need at third base — Eduardo Nunez and Conor Gillaspie are both on hand as options, with Nunez likely to see the bulk of the playing time — but Hwang has significant experience at shortstop in Korea as well. Certainly, he won’t be displacing Brandon Crawford, but Hwang could earn a look as a utility option that can bounce all over the infield (and possibly the corner outfield).
Alternatively, if his bat proves capable of handling big league pitching, he could push Nunez into that role and assume regular third base duties. San Francisco does have an uncertain setup in left field at the moment, and Nunez has experience there, though his glove hasn’t been rated well in the outfield. Either Hwang or Nunez could conceivably handle the previously mentioned super-utility role (as Nunez did for multiple years in Minnesota), so Hwang’s spring and early-season performance will be worth keeping an eye on.
Photo courtesy of Ilgan Sports.
Wish the Giants were a serious suitor for Frazier. Oh well, there’s always the possibility of mid-season interest.
Why? Nunez is nearly as good as Frazier. Why give up something for such a minor upgrade.
Not in the power department, he isn’t. I do think Nunez is plenty serviceable though.
It would be able to move Nunez into a super-sub role where he can see time around the infield and even in LF. Being in the NL, he can get at-bats in every game, really.
You need to realise those 40 HRs would crash to around 25-27 when Frazier would move to AT
It looks like he’s doing a John Cena “You can’t see me” in the above photo.
I thought the same thing haha
He’s going from one giants team to another.
Yes, and if he’s less than good in San Francisco this season perhaps he can try his luck in Japan and sign with the Yomiuri Giants next year.
And he can keep all the same gear lol
How is he with the glove?
Good glove at third, passable at 2B and SS.
I was hoping the braves would roll the dice on this guy. Shucks
J.B. ??
Shoot, I figured with numbers like that in Korea, this guy would get a major league deal.
This could be a steal for the Giants. Low risk move, cheap too.
Will be interesting to see if this guy can hit in the Show.
Agreed. $1.5m is nothing if he can stick on the MLB roster, let alone contribute at least part-time at 3B.
Have KBO numbers ever translated to success in the MLB? Maybe teams are starting to realize that these guys can’t just transition and be as close to good as they are in that bandbox league.
Jung Ho Kang is a future All Star and signed to a steal of a contract. More teams are willing to take a chance on cheap, Korean players nowadays, because why not?
Then maybe teams need to invest in more Korean pitchers like Seung-hwan Oh.
Difficult to say anything negative about this deal. Limited risk, high possible upside. Passable defender on the left side of the diamond. Potential for decent power on a team that desperately needs it. Well done.
really hoping this works out – it could open a ton of possibilities for moving guys around and creating instant depth.
Seems like waste- Giants already have super utility man in Kelby Tomlinson – who has shown the ability to handle the bat at the major league level, as well as play average to above average at 3b, SS, and 2nd.
Teams can’t get much anymore for 1.5 MM. If he busts? Better than Matt Cain’s contract. If not, he is a steal and Nunez becomes super utility.
I’m a big fan of Tomlinson, but how is this a waste ? Panik is always injured. Nunez ended the season injured and there are rumors that it’s significant and lingering. There is nobody of merit in left. Having an extra body that can play the left side of the infield well, and potentially add some desperately needed power as either a starter or off the bench seems like a no brainer. He may completely fail, but his upside is way to high to pass on.
I think that SF isn’t that enamored with Nunez or he’s more injured from last season than they are letting on. Seems to me that they are always looking for another option at 3B.
Well this takes the Giants out of Todd Frazier sweepstakes, at least for a while. It’s looking more and more like the White Sox will not be making any significant deals prior to spring training. They may have to wait until the summer trade deadline before selling off their veterans, particularly impending free agents like Frazier, Melky Cabrera and Brett Lawrie.
The White Sox might as well try and sign a couple of vets to one-year “pillow” contracts, perhaps C Matt Wieters and OF Brandon Moss, to be somewhat competitive by opening day. Even if they start off poorly, it would give them a couple more “flip” candidates by midsummer. I’d even give Justin Morneau a call to see if he might have interest in returning as a platoon DH and backup at 1B provided he is healthy.
Not sure how real the Giants interest, or willingness, was to trade for Frazier anyways. With a relatively bare cupboard in the minors and the strong potential to make a mid-season addition in left, giving up what little prospect value you have at a position that’s relatively deep (quantity wise, not necessarily quality) seems foolish.
Unlike Jose Abreu and Jose Quintana who are still in their prime years with 3 and 4 more years of relatively cheap control, the shorter term pending White Sox free agents like Frazier, Cabrera and Lawrie won’t command the same level of prospects in a trade as the summer deadline approaches. Each will be 2-3 month rentals by that time.
Hope this guy can swing the bat as well as he can flip it:
link to youtube.com
Bumgarner will be giving him a talking to.
Evvvverybody have fun tonight…
Everybody Hwang Chung tonight?
No? Ok…
“The Giants don’t have a clear-cut need at third base — Eduardo Nunez and Conor Gillaspie are both on hand as options …”
Seriously, that is the absolute definition of “a clear-cut need at third base.”