St. Louis Cardinals close to signing Seung-hwan Oh
The St. Louis Cardinals are on the cusp of a move, they’re importing a Korean reliever, who could help them develop a strong bullpen.
According to Daniel Kim a MLB/KBO reporter and former MLB Scout, the St. Louis Cardinals are closing in on Seung-hwan Oh from Korea. Kim mentioned that Oh will be undergoing a physical with the team tomorrow and if everything goes well he will sign with the team.
The 33 year old KBO veteran closer has spent the last two seasons in Japan’s Central League playing for Hanshin Tigers, after spending nine seasons with the Samsung Lions of the KBO.
This doesn’t shout out like the big splashy move like the Cardinals’ fans have been been asking for, but he could be a reliable pitcher out of the bullpen. According to Drew Silva of Hardball Talk, Oh has earned the nickname “The Final Boss” for his ability to close games for his teams.
In his 11 seasons, Oh has an ERA of 1.81 and has amassed 357 saves in his career in Korea and Japan. He will slot in nicely bend Trevor Rosenthal as an option for the Cardinals to set up their closer.
With Kevin Siegrist breaking down last year after an 81 appearance season, and with the uncertainty surrounding Jordan Walden, this is a move at building the depth of the bullpen and giving the Cardinals more late inning options. This is something that is needed for the Cardinals, and could lead to their development of a super bullpen.
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While the signing of a 33 year old reliever, doesn’t excite most, it is a move of depth by John Mozeliak. As Daniel Kim pointed out on twitter, Koji Uehera was 34 when he first came over to the MLB and we all know how good Uehera has turned out.
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The move is not finalized as of yet, so when we get details on the move, we will undoubtedly have the details for you. So, keep checking back!