Lefty pitcher option for Cubs: Kyle Hart |
Every offseason, regular stateside players hit the free agent market looking to sign with a new team. Then, there is the International Free Agent period, during which young foreign-born players hit their own free agent pool hoping to sign a Minor League deal with one of the 30 organizations.
Then you have the free agents who don't follow either trend, and those players hail from either the KBO or NPB. When Asian-born players intend to come to the United States for baseball, they have to go through a process known as a posting fee, where the team they just played for opts to post them on the free agent market. When that happens, the teams interested in or deciding to sign the specific player must pay a portion back to the original organization, which is where the posting fee comes into play. This season's International Class is one of the best in recent memory, with Roki Sasaki as the main target for everyone. Sasaki is arguably the best pitcher to have ever come out of Japan. Given that he doesn't have to follow the standard Asian-born free agent rule and will thus go through the International Free Agent process, he can be had for extremely cheap. There is a reason why so many teams are showing interest in him, as they can get him on a Minor League deal for the next few years. Apart from Sasaki, several big-name free agents are still looking for homes, and one hasn't been posted but is still thinking about it. With less than a week before all players must put their names in the free agent market to start their 45-day signing window, Kyle Hart remains one of the biggest mysteries as to whether he will come stateside or not. Should Hart elect to leave his current team (NC Dinos) in an effort to return to the majors, he may not have the same market as some of these other pitchers. However, based on what he showed last season, there will be some interest in him, and the Cubs could be one of those teams to come calling if he does want to return to the States. The 32-year-old left-hander had a very strong run at the University of Indiana, where he posted a 10-4 record in his final season while posting an ERA of 3.29. That alone got him looks from several teams as he ultimately wound up in the Red Sox organization. From that day on, Hart battled through the minors, posting a career 42-47 record in the Minors with a 3.72 ERA. Those numbers came across seven years in the Red Sox organization, which shows that he has worked hard to become a better pitcher. Eventually, his hard work paid off, as Hart earned an opportunity in the majors during the 2020 season, appearing in four contests, three of which were starts. The overall numbers weren't great, as he posted an ERA north of 15 in just 11 innings, which was all the Red Sox needed to see to cut ties with him eventually. Eventually, Hart would latch on with the Mariners and the Phillies organizations. Still, after spending three more seasons in the Minors, he elected to take his talents to Korea and signed with the NC Dinos. Although he may have been with them for just one season, Hart put on a show and delivered by far the best season of his professional career, leading many to wonder if he finally unlocked his true potential. Across 26 starts with the Dinos last season, Hart not only posted an ERA of 2.69 but also went 13-3 overall. He did that while walking just 38 hitters compared to 182 punchouts and giving the Dinos 157 innings of work. Those strikeout numbers are incredible, considering there is more than one punchout per inning. Hart is just one of the many pitchers who failed at the MLB before, went overseas to find it, and then returned better than ever. Merrill Kelly and Eric Fedde are the most recent success stories to take that route, and Kelly has emerged as an excellent MLB pitcher. Hart is looking to be the next one on that list, and with a league-best home run rate mixed with a 4.79 BB/K ratio, several teams will be looking at what he can do for them. Not an overpowering buy by any means; Hart tends to sit around 92 MPH with his fastball but can rush it up there at 94. However, like most Asian-style pitchers, it's all about location and off-speed pitches, as he provides a trio of off-speed offerings to offset a hitter's timing. Although his changeup is the most frequently used of those pitches, Hart also spins two breaking balls, with his Sweeper being the best of all the offerings. As long as he can control his pitches and limit the long ball, Hart projects as a back-of-the-rotation starter and will be someone who can be had for a bargain price. As mentioned above, Hart hasn't entered his name into the free agent market yet, but with one week to go until the deadline passes, many feel he will be entering his name sooner rather than later.
