Bobster wrote on Sep 12
th, 2022 at 4:13pm:
Ecbucs wrote on Sep 12
th, 2022 at 3:18pm:
MaineBucs wrote on Sep 12
th, 2022 at 2:18pm:
Bobster
Bae's conviction on assault charges are now 4+ years ago and his conviction and 30 game suspension from baseball is now 3+ years ago. I see where the Pirates initially signed him to a $1.2 million bonus, but that too is now almost ancient history.
Question --- If the Bucs are not interested in him because of his past assault conviction, why do you believe they have kept him around for another 3+ years?
Regardless, I do agree that it seems odd that he has not been recalled this year based on his production at AAA and his ability to play the outfield (I recognize that he was injured for a while in August).
I think Atlanta paid Bae's bonus and the Bucs picked him up after he was released because of the domestic violence charge. That being said, unless he has done something else, I can't see the Pirates leaving him off the roster this winter.
The info I see is that Bae's contract (among others) with Atlanta was voided due to the Braves GM violating international signing rules. Huntington then gave Bae a 1.25 million signing bonus. A year later, his domestic violence charge in South Korea was learned and he was suspended for 30 days in April 2019 while playing for Greensboro. He ended up having an outstanding year for Greensboro but before Huntington could decide what, if anything, to do about Bae, Huntington was fired in October 2019.
Cherington inherited Bae but it was a moot point in 2020 with the minor leagues inactive that year. Bae remained in the org and had fine years for Altoona in 2021 and at Indy this year. But BC must know that promoting Bae to MLB will cause some PR problems but also knows Bae has talent and Nutting paid a 1.25M bonus for him. With all the prospects being given a chance this year while Bae has excelled at AAA, it seems as if BC is conflicted and is avoiding a promotion of Bae to MLB regardless of how he performs at AAA. I don't see why the situation would be any different next year. But if they release him for the reason of the domestic abuse charges, there will still be PR problems as they will be asked why they kept him in the org the past 2 years after the charges were known if they felt the charges justified a release. The easiest solution for the Pirates might be to trade him or leave him unprotected and hope he gets selected in rule 5.
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/21506598/ex-atlanta-braves-gm-john-coppolell...https://www.milb.com/news/pittsburgh-pirates-ji-hwan-bae-suspended-30-games-3063... thanks, I was definitely mixed up and didn't realize the Pirates had paid him such a large bonus, I figured the Pirates were just his favorite team. I hope the Bucs don't deal him or let him go in rule 5 draft for PR reasons. They have treated him like a prospect the past two years under Ben. The following was in Tribune Review article today: he latter will continue with call-ups in September and early October, Cherington said, as the Pirates plan to take a look at prospects as they consider which ones to keep on the 40-man roster this offseason.
One of them is likely to be 23-year-old right-handed pitcher Luis Ortiz, who is expected to make his major league debut in one of Tuesday’s doubleheaders at Cincinnati. The 6-foot-2, 240-pounder from the Dominican Republic, ranked their No. 30 prospect by MLB Pipeline, tossed six no-hit innings and had nine strikeouts but allowed two runs and three walks for Triple-A Indianapolis in a 5-4 loss to Omaha on Thursday.
Where that move is made out of necessity, Cherington said the rest will be determined on a “case-by-case” basis.
Other candidates include infielder Ji-hwan Bae and outfielder Travis Swaggerty, although Cherington could reward a prospect having a strong season like Double-A catcher/outfielder Endy Rodriguez the way he did last October with the major league debuts of Roansy Contreras and Oneil Cruz. Cherington and his baseball operations staff continue to evaluate which players the Pirates will protect from the Rule 5 Draft.
https://triblive.com/sports/gm-ben-cherington-focused-on-making-the-pirates-better-this-offseason/
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Upcoming Rule 5 Draft (Read 3514 times)
