The latest on some familiar names signing outside of North America….
- Right-hander Odrisamer Despaigne has signed on for another year with the KT Wiz of the KBO League, the team announced. Despaigne will receive $800K in guaranteed money ($500K salary, $300K signing bonus) for the one-year contract, with another $300K available in incentives. After pitching 363 innings for five MLB teams between 2014-19, Despaigne signed with the Wiz last offseason and posted a 4.33 ERA, 2.24 K/BB rate, and 6.6 K/9 over 207 2/3 innings in his first year of KBO action.
- Jose Pirela is also headed to South Korea, as the Samsung Lions announced that Pirela has signed a one-year deal. Pirela will receive a $100K signing bonus and $500K in salary, plus up to $200K in incentives. Pirela spent 2020 with the Hiroshima Carp of Nippon Professional Baseball, hitting .266/.312/.411 with 11 home runs over 337 plate appearances. Pirela was deployed almost exclusively as an outfielder with the Carp, though the bulk of his Major League experience came as a second baseman over parts of six seasons from 2014-19. The bulk of Pirela’s MLB career came as a Padre, as he hit .265/.320/.405 over 817 PA and 229 games in San Diego over the 2017-18 campaigns. (Hat tip to MyKBO’s Dan Kurtz for both the Pirela and Despaigne items).
Good luck guys!
Odrisamer Despaigne has the best name of any player in the last five years
Not Brooks Pounders?
sicnarf loopstok
Remember hm years ago in the World Baseball and he did very well.
If you move the letters of his name around, it spells San Diego padres
Ha. That’s kinda cool.
Pierce Johnson disagrees…
Jose Pirela should be a good replacement for Daniel Palka
Two really bad players that should have never made it to the majors
Both played for the Padres, in darker days.