Why did the minor league alone give 1.3 billion won to the KBO reverse export master…Up to 154km, I'm just like Pedi and Heart
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On the 11th, NC signed Taylor as a new foreign pitcher for the 2026 season. It was announced that the total amount of 900,000 dollars (about 1.3 billion won), including a down payment of 280,000 dollars, an annual salary of 420,000 dollars, and an option of 200,000 dollars.
Taylor, a native of Port Coquitlam, Canada, is a right-handed pitcher with a physical condition of 1m98 and a weight of 106kg. He throws up to 154 kilometers (average 151 to 152 kilometers) of fastballs and sweepers, cutters, sinkers, and changeups. The advantage is stable control by competing with batters based on powerful fastballs.
Taylor began his professional career in 2016 by being drafted in the fourth round by the Arizona Diamondbacks. In eight seasons in the minor leagues, he played 213 games (44 starts) with a 26-25 record and a 3.48 ERA.
This season, he was a member of the minor league Triple-A team under the St. Louis Cardinals and recorded 137 ⅓ innings (24 starts) with a 10-4 record and an ERA of 3.21.
He has no major league experience at all. For eight years, he has played for several teams, including Arizona, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals, Minnesota Twins, Chicago Cubs, and St. Louis. Now it's time to settle down and play. Taylor chose a new challenge with NC's hand.
Even if NC has no major league experience in the selected players, they will have expectations. NC has continued to pick the league's top foreign ace, including Drew Luchinski, Eric Peddy, Kyle Hart and Riley Thompson. Luchinski, Peddy and Hart succeeded in returning to the Major League, and the reliability of the NC foreign scout team increased very much.
When NC manager Lee Ho-joon talked about the idea of a foreign player for the new season, he said, `Our team's foreign scout ability has already been verified. I'll trust the scouting team completely and wait for the contract"He also showed faith.
Lim Sun-nam, NC's general manager, said "Taylor is a pitcher who throws various breaking balls along with a strong fastball in the 150km range based on his excellent physical conditions. He uses five types of pitches evenly and has excellent control. It can compete with batters with power and has the ability to induce mischief. I look forward to a big role on the NC mound in the 2026 season."
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I think I will quickly adapt to Korean culture.
Taylor says, `Growing up in Vancouver, I've lived in a very diverse culture since I was young, and one of them was Korean culture. Korea's food, fashion, and film industries are what I find particularly impressive. Bong Joon-ho's films such as Parasite, Memories of Murder, and Mickey 17 are also beautiful and influential films that I personally really like."
Taylor said, "I learned a lot about KBO mainly by playing with or against players who had previously played in the KBO. By directly facing Kim Hye-sung (LA Dodgers) and Kim Ha-sung (FA), I could feel what level of talent KBO was playing. Also, I often heard stories about KBO from colleagues around me who were former foreign players, and everyone talked about their experience in this league very well. So I'm really looking forward to the day I start this journey myself," he added.
He vowed to contribute to NC's victory.
Taylor said, "My goal is to win the Korean Series and add a second championship title to Dinos history. Personally, the goal is to receive the KBO pitcher Golden Glove. I know that Hart and Pedi, former NC foreign pitchers, won this award, and I want to continue that trend"I want to show you something that you can all be proud of, both on and off the field this season. The fact that we can compete in front of our fans at our home stadium is already hotly anticipated. I will definitely bring the KBO Championship back to the Dinos this season"I'm determined.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
