Phillies news: 5 former players set for overseas KBO season
Several former Phillies outfielders and pitchers are set to begin their regular season overseas as part of the Korea Baseball Organization.
While the 2020 Major League Baseball season is on hold, professional baseball is well underway overseas in Taiwan, and soon, too, in Korea when the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) regular season begins on May 5.
Several former Philadelphia Phillies players over the past decade, including two outfielders and three right-handed pitchers, are now gearing up to try to revitalize their careers in the 10-team Korean league.
1. Aaron Altherr, OF — KBO Team: NC Dinos
Drafted by the Phillies in the ninth round of the 2009 Draft out of Agua Fria High School in Arizona, outfielder Aaron Altherr would go on to play in parts of six seasons in the majors.
Coming off of an 0-for-5 first season in 2014, ranked as a Top-10 prospect in the organization, the Germany native returned to the majors the following year and shined with extra-base power. Through 137 at-bats, Altherr collected 33 hits, nearly half of which were either doubles (11) or home runs (5) combined.
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After that, Altherr’s career largely was uneventful, outside of him being the first ever to hit a grand slam off of future Hall of Fame left-hander Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers in September 2017.
Over his next 318 games and four seasons, from 2016 to 2019, Altherr slashed just .216/.304/.389 with 43 doubles, 32 home runs, 128 RBI, 94 walks and 289 strikeouts spanning 990 plate appearances.
This past season, Altherr collected just one hit across 30 plate appearances, resulting in the Phillies placing him on waivers; he would be selected by the San Francisco Giants. After just one game, Altherr hit the waiver wire again and was selected by the New York Mets, where he produced four hits over 35 plate appearances, 15 of which he struck out. Combined in 2019, he went just 5-for-61.
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This past November, the 29-year-old inked a deal to play overseas in the KBO for a $200,00 signing bonus and $800,000 salary.
Early on, he looked like a promising outfield prospect, but ended up just in a platoon and eventual bench role for the Phillies. If successful in Korea, Altherr could find himself returning to the majors similar to fellow former Phillie Darin Ruf‘s comeback with the Giants.
2. David Buchanan, RHP — KBO Team: Samsung Lions
Drafted by the Phillies in the seventh round of the 2010 draft out of Georgia State University, right-hander David Buchanan rose through the minors before earning a promotion.
Debuting at home on May 24, 2014, against the Los Angeles Dodgers, he threw five innings and allowed just two runs on five hits, no walks and two strikeouts en route to the winning decision. Buchanan would finish the season going 5-8 with a respectable 3.75 ERA over his next 19 starts, albeit striking out only 69 batters over 112 2/3 innings.
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The following year, two starts stand out for particular; away on April 13 against the St. Louis Cardinals, he allowed seven runs in 4 1/3 innings. Four months later, away against the Arizona Diamondbacks, he yielded 11 runs over just 1 2/3 innings, the shortest outing of his career.
Buchanan’s final big-league appearance turned out to be the Phillies’ 2015 season finale, home against the Miami Marlins on October 4. In 6 2/3 innings, he allowed just two runs (one earned) en route to the no-decision. His successful final four starts that year (0-1, 2.01 ERA) would earn him another go-around in 2016, however he never reached the majors, appearing in only 27 games with the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (19-9, 3.98 ERA).
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On November 23, 2016, the Phillies released the then-27-year-old right-hander, after he made 35 starts with the team between 2014 and 2015 with a combined 5.01 ERA. One month later, he inked a one-year, $750,000 contract with the Yakult Swallows of Japan’s Central League.
Buchanan, 30, has pitched overseas ever since in Japan, going 22-32 with a 4.13 ERA in 78 appearances and 464 2/3 innings, most of which were starts. This past January, the right-hander opted to join the KBO, signing a one-year, $700,000 pact.
3. Ben Lively, RHP — KBO Team: Samsung Lions
Unlike the first two players on this list, right-hander Ben Lively was not drafted by the Phillies; rather, the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth round of the 2013 amateur draft.
Eighteen months later in December 2014, Lively was dealt to Philadelphia in exchange for outfielder Marlon Byrd, who was coming off of a successful second stint with the Phillies organization after slugging 25 home runs and 85 RBI.
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Lively, 28, showed much promise in the minors, including going a combined 18-5 with a 2.69 ERA across 28 starts between Double-A. Reading and Triple-A Lehigh Valley in 2016. The Phillies promoted the Pensacola, Florida, native in June 2017, when he won his debut at home against the San Francisco Giants, allowing just one run, four hits and three walks across seven innings.
Over the right-hander’s final 19 appearances in a Phillies uniform before he was selected off waivers by the Kansas City Royals in September 2018, he would go just 3-9, including going 0-2 with a 6.85 ERA through five 2018 outings.
Lively was used solely as a reliever with the Royals, and had early success; across five appearances to finish the 2018 season, he allowed just one run through 6 2/3 innings, albeit allowing seven hits and five walks for a 1.800 WHIP. The Royals gave Lively just one relief appearance in 2019, when facing six batters he allowed three hits, three runs and one home run.
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His contract was purchased by the Arizona Diamondbacks in June 2019, but he never reached the majors again. That August, Lively signed a contract mid-season with KBO’s Samsung Lions; he was used as a starter again, and went 4-4 with a 3.95 ERA across nine starts.
In December. the Lions re-signed Lively to a one-year, $750,000 contract with $250,000 available in bonuses. Lively and Buchanan are now teammates with the Lions.
4. Hyun Soo Kim, OF — KBO Team: LG Twins
The Major League career of outfielder Hyun Soo Kim was short-lived, given he played just 191 games across two seasons between he Baltimore Orioles and Phillies.
Kim, 32, began his professional career in the KBO, and likely will end in it. His first 10 years (2006-15) came with the Doosan Bears, from his ages 18 to 27 seasons.
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In November 2015, the international free agent, nicknamed the “Hitting Machine,” began planning to sign with an MLB team through the posting process after hitting .326/.438/.541 with 28 homers and 121 RBI with the Bears the most recent season. One month later, the Orioles and Kim agreed to a two-year, $7 million contract.
Kim had notable success with the Orioles as a MLB rookie in 2016, his 11th professional season overall. In 95 games, he slashed .302/.382/.420 with 16 doubles, six home runs and 22 RBI. He was used solely as a left fielder, committing no errors spanning 665 innings and 114 chances.
The following year, Kim struggled to mirror his rookie success, hitting only .232/.305/.288 with the Orioles in 56 games. In July 2017, the Orioles dealt Kim and minor-leaguer Garrett Cleavinger to the Phillies for veteran starting pitcher Jeremy Hellickson.
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Kim did not do much better in red pinstripes, slashing only .239/.309/.299. Despite wanting to play for a MLB team in 2018, Kim was never able to secure a second-ever MLB contract. In December 2017, Kim returned to his native country by signing a four-year, $10.6 million contract with the KBO’s LG Twins.
Kim being used in a platoon role in the majors did not benefit him; he returned to his usual self in 2018 and 2019, slugging a combined 31 home runs and 183 RBI with the LG Twins. This coming season will mark his third with the LG Twins.
5. Ricardo Pinto, RHP — KBO Team: SK Wyverns
Right-hander Ricardo Pinto was developed through the Phillies organization out of Venezuela. From his ages 18 to 23 seasons he worked his way through the minor league system, primarily being used as a starting pitcher.
Debuting in May 2017, Pinto went 1-2 with a 7.89 ERA across 25 relief appearances and 29 2/3 innings. He struck out 25 batters, but allowed 17 walks, raising his WHIP to 1.302.
Pinto, now 26, also played for the Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays organizations. The Phillies had dealt him to the White Sox in late March 2018 in exchange for international bonus slot money.
The San Francisco Giants also claimed Pinto in September 2019, but Pinto never played, as he was released weeks later. The right-hander appeared in two games with the Rays in 2019, however he allowed four runs on as many hits across 2 1/3 innings.
This past November, Pinto pursed an overseas opportunity to try to resurrect his career; he signed a one-year, $800,000 deal with the SK Wyverns.