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The San Diego Padres appear determined to take advantage of the international market when it comes to free agency.
In December, they signed Japanese reliever Yuki Matsui to a five-year, $28 million deal.
Now, Jon Heyman of the New York Post is reporting that they are close to securing another international arm: Korean right-hander Woo-Suk Go.
He is expected to step in as the team closer.
Korean righthander Woo Suk Go close to signing with Padres. Likely to be their closer.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 3, 2024
At this point, San Diego knows it will be extremely hard to retain top left-handed reliever Josh Hader.
He has said he is seeking a deal similar to the one Edwin Diaz signed last year with the New York Mets (five years, $102 million).
The Padres are reportedly cutting payroll: that’s why they traded star outfielder Juan Soto.
They certainly don’t want to pay Hader what he wants, and that’s why they pursued Matsui, who has 326 career saves in Japan, and now Woo Suk Go, who has compiled 139 in Korea.
The Padres knew they were going to need ninth-inning experience, so they went to the Asian market.
Woo Suk Go didn’t have the best of seasons in 2023, posting a 3.68 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP in 44 innings.
However, he did strike out 59 hitters over that span and his career ERA in Korea is much better at 3.18.
MLB is much, much harder than the Korean KBO, but San Diego hopes the transition is similar to that of fellow Korean star Ha-Seong Kim.
The Padres aren’t likely to be big spenders, but they are making sure to stay as competitive as they can during these circumstances.
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