It was Mr. Zero until the opening 11G...Cold reality facing for the first time in five years → Doosan's holding rights Flexen FA

Aug 05, 2025

It was Mr. Zero until the opening 11G...Cold reality facing for the first time in five years → Doosan's holding rights Flexen FA
Flexen during the Doosan period. Sports Chosun DB



It was Mr. Zero until the opening 11G...Cold reality facing for the first time in five years → Doosan's holding rights Flexen FA
Flexen during the Doosan period. Sports Chosun DB
After five years of re-entering the Major League, we faced a cold reality. Chris Flexen (31) from the Doosan Bears was finally released.

Local media such as Major League Trade Rumors (MLTR) reported on the 5th (Korean time) that Flexen was released from his team, the Chicago Cubs. On the 30th of last month, he received an out-of-power notification (DFA) from the Cubs and was released because he did not receive any claims from any team during the suspension period.

Flexen had a good record of 5-1 with a 3.09 ERA in 21 games (first starter) this season.




Even before the season, he wore a Cubs uniform as a minor league contract, but his position seemed to have completely changed since the opening. Since his first big league call-up on May 3, he has maintained 'Mr. Zero' with four wins and no losses and zero ERA in 11 games. Since then, he has been a long man and bridge agent responsible for up to four innings if necessary. The ERA until the 6th was 0.83.

On July 12, he also got a chance to start as a substitute against the New York Yankees. The start result was three hits, four outs and three runs during four innings.

It was Mr. Zero until the opening 11G...Cold reality facing for the first time in five years → Doosan's holding rights Flexen FA
Flexen during the Doosan period. Sports Chosun DB
Is his first start in a long time a poison. Since then, it has fallen into a sharp slump. Five runs in three innings against the Kansas City Royals on the 22nd, four runs (two earned) in two innings against the Chicago White Sox on the 26th, and two runs in two innings against the Milwaukee Brewers on the 29th. In four games and 11 innings, the ERA reached a whopping 9.82.




In the end, notification of release could not be avoided. It is the sorrow of a pitcher in his 30s who signed a minor league contract.

When he played for Doosan in 2020, Flexen showed off his powerful fastball in the early-mid 150km range, recording 8 wins, 4 losses and an ERA of 3.01. At that time, he was loved by Doosan fans for his combination of fiery fastball, passionate pitching, and cool emotional expression that matched his solid physique of 1m91. In particular, he was one of the leading players in Doosan's miracle moves in the postseason to advance to the Korean Series.

Since the following year, he has re-entered the U.S. stage and played for the Seattle Mariners, New York Mets, Colorado Rockies, and Chicago White Sox this year.




It was Mr. Zero until the opening 11G...Cold reality facing for the first time in five years → Doosan's holding rights Flexen FA
크리스 플렉센. AP Yonhap News
He was praised as the best reverse export case since Merrill Kelly (former SK Wyverns, current Texas Rangers), with a 14-6 record and a 3.01 ERA in 31 games in 2021, his first season back. The following year, he suffered a bit of a slump and went down to the bullpen during the season. Still, 33 games (22 starts) were not bad with 8 wins, 9 losses and 137 ⅔ innings of 3.74. His salary jumped from $4 million to $8 million, but he was shunned in the postseason due to the nature of Longman. Understanding Seattle made it to the division series from the start of the wild-card game, but there was no name for Flexen on the roster.

In the 2023 season, he suffered a severe slump, and eventually received an out-of-power notice in June. He changed his uniform to his former team, the New York Mets, but it was used to fill salary for recruiting players. It was immediately released. Understanding In July, he signed with the Colorado Rockies' Triple-A team and tried again in the big league, but it was not good.

It was Mr. Zero until the opening 11G...Cold reality facing for the first time in five years → Doosan's holding rights Flexen FA
크리스 플렉센. AP Yonhap News
He had a chance to start again with the White Sox last season, but the team and himself did not do well. He pitched in 33 games (30 starts) and played 160 innings, recording only 3 wins and 15 losses with a 4.95 ERA, and became an FA after the season.

This year, he tried again to make meaningful results by re-attempting the big league, but he fell into a long slump and suffered another setback. Now I'm on the verge of finding a new team.

Currently, the right to withhold Flexen based on the KBO League is in Doosan. Doosan wanted to renew its contract with Flexen, who performed well in the 2020 season, but Flexen rejected it and challenged the U.S. stage.

However, this is the fifth year and the last year of the right to withhold. It's been 'freedom' since this winter. There may still be teams that are old enough and interested to play outside the KBO League.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.