How much will the club have to offer Kang Baek-ho (24, kt Wiz) to be satisfied?
Kang Baek-ho has not been able to finalize salary negotiations with the club until the day before the start of spring camp. The kt squad is scheduled to depart from Incheon International Airport on the 29th for Arizona, the US spring camp training ground. In order for a player to board a plane to the United States, he must sign the annual salary contract for this year, but Kang Baek-ho is still undecided.
The fact that no conclusion has been reached until the end of the off-season means that the cuts are large. Although the criteria may differ slightly for each club, in general, each player’s performance, such as the performance of the previous season and contribution to the team, is evaluated to prepare evidence to present in salary negotiations. Because clubs set the range of increase or reduction based on figures, there are few cases where they go through pain in the negotiation process.
Kang Baek-ho was an extremely high-paid person who received 550 million won last year. He produced clear results in the 2021 season with a batting average of 0.347 (179 hits in 516 at-bats), 16 homers, 102 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.971 in 142 games. 스포츠토토
However, last year was his worst season due to injury. Kang Baek-ho only played 62 games, less than half of his 144 regular season games. He had a batting average of .245 (58 hits in 237), 6 home runs, 29 RBI, and an OPS of 0.683, a record he had never received even in his rookie season.
Of course, the high school evaluation can’t be good. It’s also a problem that his batting stats have run out, but he hasn’t contributed in half of his 144 games. KT had no choice but to present a drastically reduced amount to Kang Baek-ho, who failed to prove the value of 550 million won last year.
It is not that Kang Baek-ho did not anticipate the reduction. He has been struggling with the club so far because it is below the amount he expected. As the time between players and clubs cannot narrow their differences, the atmosphere is now leading to a battle of pride.
kt intends to conclude negotiations with Kang Baek-ho before leaving the country on the 29th. Since the amount is set based on the annual salary calculation system, it seems difficult for the club to unconditionally match the amount Kang Baek-ho wants. There is also a risk of being seen as preferential in the eyes of other kt players. KT is negotiating until the end with the attitude that it will try to convince Kang Baek-ho as much as possible.
If the emotional fight lasts longer, neither Kang Baek-ho nor kt will be good. Kang Baek-ho is the main hitter who needs to give strength to the kt lineup even in the new year. If you show him an activity in the new year that will make up for his shattered pride, you can laugh out loud again a year later. Can both players and clubs compromise wisely and face the new season without any noise?