It signed a total of 750,000 U.S. dollars with Ronnie Williams and Sean Nolin for 900,000 dollars. However, Nolin was out of the starting rotation due to an injury about a month after the opening of the game, during which Ronnie acted to damage the team's atmosphere. KIA was considering replacing Nolin, but changed its direction to change Ronnie. Later, Thomas Panoni joined as an alternative foreign player, and Nolin returned to take charge of the rotation of starting players in the second half. Both players showed good performance in the second half of the season, helping KIA advance to the quarterfinals. However, it was a disappointing performance to have the starting lineup filled by this season.
This season, Kia signed contracts with Shaun Anderson and Adonis Medina instead of Nolan and Fanoi. Both players had high expectations for their stellar pitching with speeds of more than 150 kilometers per hour. However, Medina had only two wins (six losses) in 12 games through June, and Anderson had disappointing performance with only four wins (seven losses) in 14 games through early July. Kia chose to switch both players this time. Mario Sanchez, who played in the Taiwanese pro baseball, and Fanoi, who joined the team as a substitute last year, are joining the KIA team again.
On the list of players on hold that was recently announced, Kia has included only Fanoi, except Sanchez. Regardless of whether foreign players are eligible or not, it means that it will not accompany Sanchez in the new season. Sanchez became a sensation in the early days of his debut with his unique pitching form and sweeper, but he failed to show any significant performance since then. Considering that there have been constant criticisms that he was already spotted by the opponent team about his pitching form, it seems difficult to leave him with full-time for the new season.
Panoni, who joined the club in the middle of the season, had six wins and three losses in 82 ⅓s and an ERA of 4.26 in 16 games. He has displayed the same performance as last year for a substitute. However, given that he played in the KBO League for two seasons, there is room for analysis by the opponent to some extent.
Kia is set to supply and demand two new foreign pitchers. It selected candidates early on and analyzed them to some extent. The reference point is players who have ball power and ball control higher than Panoni. Contact will likely take place in earnest after the U.S. Major League Winter Meetings this month.
Another variable is the view from the U.S. market toward the KBO League. Since the system that caps the total amount of foreign players' first year at 1 million dollars was implemented, the attractiveness of the KBO League in the U.S. has significantly declined. Another factor that makes it inferior to competition is that players who are similar in Japan can open their wallets without restriction. It is uncertain whether a player who has already been listed will be able to easily decide to move to the KBO League. Kia plans to push for renewing the contract of Fanoi depending on the situation. 먹튀검증