The Kia Tigers of the Korea Baseball Organization announced that they have signed left-hander Thomas Pannone, with right-hander Shaun Anderson placed on waivers in a corresponding move. Hat tip to Dan Kurtz of MyKBO.net.
Pannone, now 29, was with the Kia Tigers for the second half of last season. He tossed 82 2/3 innings over 14 starts with a 2.72 ERA. He struck out 21% of batters faced while walking 6.9% of them. This winter, he returned to North America and signed a minor league deal with the Brewers. He reported to their Triple-A club and threw 53 1/3 innings over 11 appearances with a 2.70 ERA in that time.
That solid performance got him selected to the big league roster a week ago but he was designated for assignment after just one appearance of 2 2/3 innings. He was released yesterday and will now rejoin the Kia Tigers. He previously played in the majors with the Blue Jays in 2018 and 2019. When combined with his lone outing this year, he has a 5.46 ERA in 118 2/3 innings over 50 major league contests.
KBO teams are only allowed three roster spots for non-Korean players, so Pannone’s signing had to come with a corresponding move. That will be Anderson, 28, who signed with the Tigers in the winter. He made 14 starts this year, tossing 79 innings with a 3.76 ERA. He only struck out 19% of opponents but kept the ball on the ground at a 61.7% rate. Despite those fairly solid results, the Tigers will opt to give Pannone a try and have let Anderson go.
Ah now I understand why the Brewers released him instead of outrighting him