BREAKING NEWS: Former Philadelphia Phillies Top Prospect Heads to Korea to Play in KBO

Connor Seabold, a right-handed pitcher, will play in the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) after spending 2023 with the Colorado Rockies.

According to the Yonhap News Agency:

On Friday, the Samsung Lions announced the signing of former major league pitcher Connor Seabold.

The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club announced that Seabold, 27, had agreed to a one-year contract worth up to $1 million. He’ll earn $800,000 in salary, $100,000 in signing bonus, and another $100,000 in incentives.

Seabold will undoubtedly receive more money and a far more secure position on staff by joining the KBO. If he had stayed in affiliated baseball, he would have been limited to minor league opportunities.

In 2023, the California native went 1-7 with a 7.52 ERA in 87.1 innings for the Rockies.

He began his career with the Philadelphia Phillies before being traded to the Boston Red Sox during the COVID 2020 season. He made his major league debut in 2021 and appeared in only six games with Boston in 2021 and 2022.

In his career, he is 1-11 with an 8.12 ERA.

If he performs well in Korea, he will be eligible to return to the United States in 2025. Chris Flexen and Erik Fedde are two recent examples of pitchers who excelled in the KBO before moving on to MLB opportunities.

Seabold was once ranked as the Red Sox organization’s No. 15 prospect. That happened in 2021. In 2019, he was ranked as the Phillies’ 29th-best prospect.